Dan's Return: Sequel to Finding a Way Back
by Mosie1213
Summary: Dan's alive, unbeknownst to everyone in Tree Hill. And he has big plans in store for revenge involving Nathan and Lucas. Will he succeed?
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

Four years…for almost four years he's been watching them. He's been watching his sons with their families and their happy lives. Both of them with their wives and children…it really pisses him off.

_They don't deserve to be so happy. It's not fair. I would be happy now if it weren't for them and their damn…independence. If Karen had just gotten an abortion when I told her to, I would never had to deal with Lucas and Nathan would've never met Haley. Oh…how I hate her too._

_Nathan had become so independent after he started seeing her. She had helped him emancipate himself from Deb and me. And Deb…she would've never left me if Nathan had just stayed. And we would still be married…maybe even happy. But we're not, and I'm not._

_No…now I'm forced to isolate myself from the rest of Tree Hill. I live in hiding away from them all because I'm supposed to be dead. They all think I'm gone, that I died in that accident when I tried to take James away from them. But I survived. I used plan B when I knew there was no escaping and I faked my death. I paid that doctor to tell the cops I'd died. It worked like a charm…no one has come looking for me._

_And being dead definitely is helping me plan my revenge. Nathan and Lucas ruined my life. They took everything away from me…everything I could've had. And now I'm going to take everything away from them…. sweet revenge is mine!_


	2. Chapter1: Bad Dreams, Good Memories

**a/n: Welcome back to my story readers :lol: how did you like the prologue? Good I hope/ I hope you enjoy this chapter too. And don't forget...REVIEW when you finish. Thanks!**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own One Tree Hill or it's characters...only this storyplot.**

**Chapter One: **_Bad Dreams and Memories_

_Haley smiled as she rocked her new son in her arms in the rocking chair in the room painted blue._

_"God, you are the most handsome baby boy in the world, aren't you?" She said as she stared down at her son with a smile. "You look just like your daddy and big brothers."_

_And boy did he…with his tiny head full of dark brown hair, brown eyes, tiny nose and pouty lips, which all of her children shared. He yawned as she stared at him and she said, "Oh, you're so tired, aren't you? Okay…mommy will let you sleep."_

_She stood up and laid her son in the white crib in the corner. She turned on the music mobile over the crib and let it play. She smiled once more before walking to the door. She stopped and turned when she heard his cry and she nearly stopped breathing when she saw Dan standing at the crib with the baby in his arms._

"_So adorable…" Dan said before looking up at Haley. "He really does have daddy and grandpa's good looks…doesn't look like you at all."_

"_Wh-what are you doing?" Haley stuttered in fear as she stepped closer._

"_I'm holding my new son."_

"_He's not your son. Give him to me."_

_Dan glanced down at the baby, then smirks at Haley and replies, "Nah…you got James back. I think I should keep this one."_

"_What? I don't think so. Give me back my baby."_

"_Why? You've got four others. I don't think you'll miss one."_

_He walked by her, but he pushed her away. So she screamed for someone who could stop him._

"_Nathan! Nathan, help! The baby…Nathan…"_

"Haley…Haley wake up!" Nathan says as he gently shakes her shoulders.

Haley wakes with a start and looks up at Nathan, who is leaning over her.

"Are you okay?" He asks as she rolls over to face him.

"Yeah…I was having a nightmare."

"Well yeah…I got that when you started screaming my name. That's like the third one this week. Was it the same dream?"

"No. Dan took the baby in this one. God…why is he haunting my dreams like this? He's dead…I shouldn't be worried."

"Well maybe it has to do with the time of year." Nathan suggests. "It is June…the same month Dan took James five years ago."

"Yeah, maybe that's what it is. I hope he isn't having bad dreams again too. Maybe we should go check on him and make sure he's sleeping okay."

"He is. I just checked on him and the girls when I went to the bathroom. You should stop worrying so much though. It's not good for the baby."

Nathan places his hand on Haley's stomach and Haley places her hand on his as she replies, "Yeah, I know. I'll try to relax for him. But you know what would really help?"

"What's that?"

Haley smiles, leans over and kisses him. After a few minutes, Haley pulls away and touches her stomach again and says, "Well that relaxed me, but I think it woke him up."

Nathan chuckles and says, "Come here."

Haley laughs before they kiss again.

Lucas flips off the light as he leaves the master bathroom. He sees Brooke standing in front of her dresser, still dressed in her pajamas and pulling her shiny, reddish brown hair back into a ponytail. He stops and stares at her, smiling as he admires his wife's beauty.

He sneaks up slowly behind her and Brooke smiles when she sees him in the mirror just before he wraps his arms around her waist and kisses her neck. Brooke chuckles and says, "Pretty sneaky, Broody."

"Hmm…pretty sexy, Cheery." Lucas replies as Brooke turns around and kisses his lips.

Lucas moves them in the direction of the bed while still kissing her. They lay down and their kisses grow more intense. But Brooke interrupts with smiles as she tries to stop him.

"Lucas…Luke…honey…we…can't."

He kisses her again and says, "Sure we can."

"No, Luke…" she pushes him off and scoots up by the pillow. "We have to get breakfast for the girls."

"Jess can get cereal for her and her sisters." Lucas protests, Brooke's head resting on his arm. "And we can have some alone time together."

"Yeah, well, we've had alone time together all morning and on and off all night, all week."

"And that bothers you?"

"No…but if we're not careful, we're going to get pregnant again."

Lucas smiles and asks, "What's so wrong with that? We said we wanted to have one more, didn't we?"

"Yes…but I thought we also decided we were going to wait until the twins are in school before we tried again."

"Well, when Jess starts second grade in a few months, Ashlyn and Megyn will start preschool, so…"

"You're really ready for another one?"

"Yeah, I think I am. I love being a dad to our little girls and they are too grown up already."

"They're eight and four." Brooke chuckles.

"I know, but still… I'd love to add another one to our brood or maybe even a little boy?"

Brooke smiles and says, "A little boy would be different."

"So what do you say?"

"Time to get up!" Two little girl's voices interrupt as the bedroom door opens.

Two short little girls with short light brown hair and bright blue eyes like Lucas come running into the bedroom; one dressed in a pink leotard and tutu and the other in purple footed pajamas.

"Good morning!" Megyn says in her pajamas as she follows her sister in the tutu onto the bed.

Brooke laughs at Lucas' "too late" comment as they sit up against the headboard.

"What's so funny, Momma?" Ashlyn asks, crawling over to Brooke after kissing Lucas.

"Nothing baby girl." Brooke replies as she pulls her daughter in her lap and kisses her cheek.

"Ash, did you wear that to bed?" Lucas asks, smiling as Megyn wraps her arms around his neck and sits in his lap.

"No. I just put it on when I waked up." Ashlyn replies. "It's my favorite outfit."

"That's not an outfit, Ashlyn." Megyn interjects. "It's your costume for ballet."

"Well, duh! I am a ballerina!" Ashlyn retorts and Megyn sticks her tongue out at her sister. Ashlyn returns the gesture.

"Hey you two, stop it." Lucas demands. "You're sisters…you should be nice to each other."

"Sorry, Daddy." Megyn says. "Sorry Ash."

Ashlyn still has her arms crossed and Brooke nudges her and says, "Ashlyn, apologize to your sister please."

Ashlyn looks back at her sister and says, "I'm sorry too, Megyn."

"It's okay." Megyn forgives and Ashlyn smiles as she hugs her sister.

"That's better." Lucas says with a smile.

"Hey, is Jess still sleeping?" Brooke asks her youngest daughters.

"No, she's talkin' on the phone." Ashlyn replies.

They hear a giggle in the hallway and see a taller little girl with shoulder length red brown hair walk past with the cordless phone.

"Hey Jessi!" Lucas calls out.

Jessilin backs up, stops in the doorway and says, "What?"

"Who are you talking to at 9:00 in the morning?" Brooke asks.

"Anna. Who else?"

"Why?" Lucas wonders. "You're going to see each other in a few hours."

"I know, but I need her help deciding what to wear." Jessi replies before walking away.

Lucas and Brooke both chuckle and Lucas looks at his wife and says, "Almost eight years old and already too much like you."

Brooke smacks him playfully and Megyn says, "Mommy, I'm hungry."

"Yeah, me too." Ashlyn replies. "What's for breakfast?"

"Ask daddy. He's making breakfast today so I can actually have enough time to get ready for Jenny's party."

"Party?" Ashlyn says excitedly. "We're going to a party today?"

"Yeah. Jenny's graduation party, remember?" Lucas says as Brooke closes the door to the bathroom.

"I remember, Daddy." Megyn says. "But I'm still hungry."

Lucas smiles, stands up with Megyn and says, "Okay, come on…we'll go make breakfast."

"Yay!" The four-year-old twins shout in unison as Lucas lifts Ashlyn into his arms too.

Jake smiles as he stares at the new photo of him and Peyton standing on either side of Jenny in her white cap and gown outside Tree Hill High School. _My little girl is all grown up,_ he thinks as he stares at Jenny's beautiful smile. _How can she be a high school graduate already? It seems like only yesterday she was graduating preschool…_

"_Do you think daddy will like this dress?" He heard Jenny's voice from outside her bedroom._

"_Yes, he's going to love it." Peyton replied. "You look so pretty."_

"_Thanks, Mommy. And thanks for doing my hair pretty like yours. I hope daddy will think I look pretty too."_

"_Oh, he does." Jake said as she stepped into the bedroom._

_Peyton and Jenny both looked over and Jenny smiled and said, "Hi, Daddy!"_

"_Hey angel." Jake said as he knelt down to hug his five year old._

"_Daddy, do you think I look pretty for real?" Jenny asked with wide eyes._

"_Oh definitely. You are the most beautiful little girl in the whole preschool."_

"_But I'm not in preschool anymore, Daddy. Not no more after today. I gonna be in kindergarten, you member?"_

"_Yes you are." Jake said, running his hand through his daughter's soft, light brown hair styled in little ringlet curls._

I can't believe how grown up you are, _he thought._

"God…and I thought you were grown up then." Jake says to himself as he still stares at the photo.

"And now it's thirteen years later." Peyton says from behind and Jake looks over at her and smiles as she enters their bedroom, holding a tiny infant in soft pink pajamas.

"Reminiscing are we?" She asks with a smile as she sits down on the bed next to her husband.

"Yeah…" Jake says slowly. "I just can't believe my little girl is all grown up."

"She is all grown up, honey, but that's okay. She's a wonderful young woman now. And it was bound to happen sooner or later."

"I know, but…she just grew up so fast."

"Well…" Peyton glances down at the infant in her arms fast asleep as she finishes, "If it helps…you still have two great little kids to watch grow up. Plus, we have a new little girl who's just like her big sisters and really loves her daddy."

Jake smiles and says, "Yeah…you're right."

He looks down at his two month old baby girl and smiles wider as he touches her soft brown head and stares into her bright green eyes.

"Come here beautiful." He says as Peyton passes her to Jake and she begins to fuss.

Jake rocks her in his arms and says, "Shh…it's okay Ellie. Daddy's got you. You're okay…daddy's got you."

Ellie stops fussing as she closes her eyes again.

"See…" Peyton says smiling. "Another total daddy's girl. And you've got 18 years left with her."

Jake smiles again as Peyton wraps an arm around his shoulder.


	3. Chapter 2: Pep Talk & Party

**Chapter Two: **_Pep Talk & Party_

"Sophia," Haley says, walking over to the kitchen table where three of her four children are sitting. "You're going to have to eat something for breakfast. Don't you like your pancakes?"

"Not today." Three and a half year old Sophia replies, shaking her head of short dark hair. She and Cooper are the only children of Haley's with hair like their father's, though Nathan and Cooper both have black hair and Sophia's is brown.

"I want Cocoa Puffs, Mommy." She finishes.

"You eat Cocoa Puffs everyday." Haley argues.

"But I want them. Please, Momma, please?" Sophia purses her lips and bats her eyes and Haley smiles.

"Fine…I give up. If you're going to eat it, you can have it." Haley says as she reaches into the wall cupboard next to the refrigerator.

"Yay!"

Ten-year-old James stops in front of Haley as she pulls the cereal down and he says. "I loved your pancakes, Mom."

Haley smiles again, ruffles his light brown hair and says, "Thanks, baby."

"Do I have time to watch TV for a little while?"

"Um…just for a little while. Then you have to get ready to go."

James runs to the living room as six year old Katie says, "Mommy, can I have more milk please?"

"Yeah." Haley sighs returning to the fridge as the basement door open and fourteen year old Cooper enters the kitchen with messy, long black hair and dressed in sweatpants and a white t-shirt. Haley looks over at him as he walks over to his sisters at the table and she says, "Good morning."

He nods his head at her, but does not respond as he steals a piece of cereal from his youngest sister's bowl.

"Hey!" She responds. "That's my cereal!"

"Mine now." He taunts, stealing another chocolate ball.

"Hey!"

"Cooper, leave her alone!" Katie defends.

"Mind your own business Squirt."

"Coop, knock it off." Haley says, waddling over to the counter by the table. "There's more cereal in the cabinet or there's more pancakes if you want some."

"Nah…not hungry." He replies before entering the living room.

Haley stares at where her son just was and mumbles, "No thanks, Mom. I'm not hungry, but thanks for the offer."

She sighs and rubs her very pregnant stomach as Nathan enters from the hall after walking down the stairs.

"Hey, are you okay?" He asks worriedly, walking over to her.

"Yeah, I'm fine." She replies, rubbing her forehead now.

"No you're not. What's wrong?"

"Hey, Cooper, give that back! I had it first!" They hear James' voice in the next room and Nathan looks back at Haley and sighs, "Coop again?"

"I don't know where this attitude of his came from or why he has to be so rude and mean to the kids or why he suddenly ignores me, but it's driving me crazy. I swear it's teen you all over again. I don't know what I did to make him hate me so much."

"He doesn't hate you. He's almost 14 and it's summer on a Saturday morning. Look, I'll go talk to him okay? You need to relax and sit down and eat some breakfast."

"Okay." Haley nods.

Nathan kisses her and then kisses his daughter's good morning before entering the living room where Cooper is flipping through channels with the remote in the chair by the television and James is slouching on the couch with his arms crossed.

"Hey bud, what's going on?" Nathan asks his youngest son.

"Nothing…'cept for Coop being a big jerk!" James replies throwing a pillow at his brother.

Cooper tries to retaliate, but Nathan holds up a hand and says to him, "No, Coop, don't do it."

Cooper faces the TV again and Nathan sits down next to James and asks, "How'd you sleep last night? Okay?"

"Yeah."

"No bad dreams?"

"No."

"Ten years old and still having nightmares." Cooper interjects. "You're such a baby."

"You know what Coop you can just—"

"Alright, that's enough! Jamie, why don't you go get dressed for the party so I can talk to your brother."

James leaves the couch and the room. Nathan looks at Cooper and says, "That was really mean to say to him, Cooper. You know why he has those nightmares."

"I was just kidding around, Dad. Besides…it's been four years. Shouldn't he grow up and get over it by now?"

"No and that's understandable. He'll probably never get over what happened to him and if he does, it'll be a long time still. And you should be respectful of that."

Cooper nods in annoyance and Nathan continues, "You need to be nicer to your brother and your sisters, okay? You need to change this attitude you've had around everyone these last few months, especially with your mom. She can't handle the stress right now with being pregnant."

"Yeah, well it's not my fault you guys decided to have another baby."

"Hey son, watch it." Nathan gave him a warning glare.

"Sorry."

Nathan sits down on the footstool in front of the chair and the television and continues, "Look…I know you've got a lot of stuff on your mind right now too; growing up…girls…basketball…cars…and your music. And I know sometimes you get frustrated with all that and all this family stuff. Believe me, I've been there for me. You're exactly like I was when I was your age. But you have to find a way to deal with everything because all a selfish attitude does is piss the rest of us off, especially your mom. I mean, you know how she gets when she's pregnant."

"I heard that." Haley says loudly from the kitchen and Cooper and Nathan both smile and raise their eyebrows.

"She loves you Coop. And she just misses you talking to her and getting along with her like you used to. So do you think you can try to be a little nicer to everyone for your mom's sake?"

Cooper nods his head and replies, "Yeah…I'll try."

"Alright." Nathan says slapping his son's shoulder. "Now…how about we go play a little ball before we have to get ready for the party?"

"But I thought I was grounded because of my final grade card?"

"Yeah, well I think I can sneak you out for a game."

"This is one kick ass party, Jenny." Jenny's best friend Amber says as she sits with Jenny and the rest of their friends by the swimming pool. "It's way better than my party was. You know so many people."

"Well, they're all pretty much my family." Jenny replies.

"Wow…family of 16 plus friends." Kyle, another friend says making then laugh.

"Jenny!" Jessilin calls out as she runs through the white picket pool gate in a pink swimsuit top and denim squirt.

"Hey Jess." Jenny greets her with a hug.

"Where's Anna?" Jessilin asks as she pulls out of the hug.

Jenny chuckles and says, "She's in the house putting her swimsuit on."

Jess turns and runs past Cooper, James, and Riley playing football in the yard until she reaches the house.

"She's so cute." Amber says when Jenny turns around. "She and your little sister remind me of us when we were little."

"Yeah, don't they? Hey, I'll be right back. I'm going to go say hi to everyone and see what's taking them so long to get out here."

Jenny leaves the pool area and pushes Cooper for intercepting the ball from her little brother as she arrives at the house.

"Ahh…she finally makes an appearance." Jake says smiling as his daughter enters the kitchen where the adults are helping to prepare food for the cookout.

"Ha, ha." Jenny replies slapping her father's shoulder. "I happen to be outside in the amazing sunshine, getting a tan and enjoying myself. You all should do the same. God knows you all could use a good party and tan." You've all gotten so white and boring."

"Excuse me?" Peyton says as she enters the kitchen with the baby monitor. "Who's boring parents are throwing her this party?"

"I'm just kidding." Jenny laughs. "Seriously though, are you guys coming out or what?"

"Yes, we're coming." Lucas says as he and Nathan follow Jake out of the kitchen, Jake carrying a tray full of uncooked hamburger patties and hotdogs.

"Can you get the door, Nate?" Jake asks before Nathan does.

"So how does it feel to finally be a high school graduate?" Haley asks as she passes Sophia to Brooke by request.

"Free." Jenny sighs and her mother, Haley and Brooke chuckle.

"I think I remember that feeling." Brooke says.

"Jenny?" A little voice says from the dining room behind her.

Jenny turns around to see Anna, Jessilin, Katie and the twins standing behind her in their swimsuits, the twins with floaties on their arms.

"Will you come swim with us please?" Anna finishes.

"Sure…it's a hot day. Let's go swim." Jenny follows them to the door.

"Come on, Mommy." Sophia says to Haley from over Brooke's shoulder. "I want to swim too. Come watch me."

"Okay." Haley chuckles as she follows her friends out the door.

"Man, those two sure are party animals." Lucas says looking at Haley and Sophia, who are both, asleep in a chair around a table outside by the pool. Sophia is asleep on Haley's small lap with her head resting on Haley's arm.

"They both look so tired." Brooke says, sitting next to Lucas, each holding a twin wrapped in a towel on their lap.

"Haley definitely is." Nathan says, pushing some of Haley's light brown hair out of her face. "And Sophia just likes to be with Haley wherever she is."

"Mommy's girl, huh?" Peyton says smiling as she holds a sleeping Ellie in her arms. "I wouldn't know what's it like to have one of those."

Her friends laugh and turn their heads when they hear louder laughs coming from the other table on the other side of the pool where Jenny and her friends are.

"I'm really glad you guys could come to my party." Jenny says to her friends. "It wouldn't be a party without you. Thanks so much for coming."

"Of course." Kennedy says, sitting in the seat next to Jenny across from Amber, Kyle and a few other friends. "We wouldn't miss it for the world."

"It's just shame your lover boy couldn't make it." Amber says.

"Yeah…I know." Jenny replies. "But Ty had finals at school and then he had to work. But I'm going to see him in a few weeks."

"Or maybe sooner." Kyle says, staring past Jenny across the yard. "Check it out."

Jenny turns around in her chair and her jaw drops when she sees her tall blond boyfriend walking towards the pool from the side of the house with Deb and Rob. She smiles as she quickly jumps out of her seat and all eyes follow her as she runs around the pool toward the gate.

"Oh my god, Ty!" She squeals as she reaches the yard and the tall blond smiles as he stops to hug her.

He stumbles back as she throws her arms around him and he hugs her tight as he says, "Hey, baby. Did you miss me?"

"Hell yeah I missed you!" Jenny replies as she releases the hug, but still holds his hands as she kisses him. After the kiss she asks, ""So what are you doing here? I thought you're supposed to be starting your new job?"

"I am, but not until next week." Tyler replies with a wider smile. "Thought I'd drive down and surprise you."

"Well that you certainly did." Jenny says before kissing her boyfriend again.

The adults are still watching by the pool.

"I guess she really is grown up." Lucas says smiling.

"Maybe a little too much." Jake replies and Peyton pats his back as she smiles.

**a/n: So this is all i have right now. I have some serious writing to do. So it might be a couple days before i can get you an update. So please be patient and please review in the meantime. And remember...this story is far from over!**


	4. Chapter 3: Just a Dream

**a/n: Hey guys...finally i have an update for you. sorry it's been so long...i had a little writer's block, but finally it's gone and i actually have a little bit to add to the end of chapter 2, so that is what the first part is before chapter 3. please review. thanks )**

_Too much happiness…they are too happy. But not for long…soon I will have my revenge._

He's been planning for years…thinking up the perfect way to get back at Nathan and Lucas for taking away is own life and happiness. And finally he's figured out a way to take it all away from them.

He chuckles as he watches them laughing together from a few yards away. _They're so in love…so happy…but not for long._

"Enjoy your time together now." He says to himself, grinning. "It won't last much longer. There's just a few things left to do."

He chuckles again before turning around and walking away.

**Chapter Three: **_Just a Dream_

_Beep…beep…slow beeping she can faintly hear, like the beeping of machines in a hospital. Her eyes are closed and she is lying down, but she can still hear voices, particularly Lucas. His is standing out to her the loudest, although all sounds are faint to her now. But she can feel his hand in hers and his voice is soft and sad._

"_Come on, baby…you have to come back to me, Brooke. I love you so much and I need you…the girls need you. You have to pull through this…you have to hold on…please…"_

_He is crying so hard. And she wants to wake up and comfort him and stop his tears, but…BEEP…BEEP, BEEP…louder more persistent beeping and quieter, fading voices before nothing is heard anymore…_

Brooke sits up in bed, sweating and startled by the dream, the nightmare.

"Whoa…" She says out loud and Lucas sits up next to her after feeling her push away from him in bed.

"What is it?" He asks groggily.

"I don't know." Brooke replies. "A nightmare I'm still trying to figure out."

"Well, are you okay?" Lucas asks, rubbing her back.

Brooke looks at him and throws her arms around him.

"Thank God it was just a dream." She says.

"What baby?" Lucas says, holding her close before pulling out of the hug and saying. "You're shaking. Tell me what happened…tell me about the dream."

Lucas leans against the headboard and Brooke leans into him and explains the dream to him.

"Well it was just a dream." Lucas says when she finishes.

"I know, but it felt so real and really weird and random."

"I hate those kind of dreams. But you're okay. It was just a dream. Do you feel better now that you've talked about it?"

Brooke peers up at him and replies, "Yeah, I do. I always feel better and safer with you."

Lucas smiles before they kiss.

"No…don't…please…Mom! Dad!"

Haley and Nathan enter their son's bedroom after hearing his screams from their own bedroom down the hall. James is rolling around in his bed, still yelling. Haley and Nathan rush over to his bed and sit on either side of him and try to wake him.

"James," Nathan says, rubbing his son's head. "Wake up, buddy…come on."

James wakes with a start and sits up, panting.

"It's okay, baby." Haley says, running her hand over his sweaty forehead and through his light brown hair. "You're okay…it was just a bad dream."

"You okay?" Nathan asks and James nods.

"Are you sure?" Haley wonders with concern. "Do you want to tell us about it?"

James stares at his mother as he thinks about the dream again. _Maybe if I don't talk about it, it won't come true, _he decides to himself and he replies, "No…I, um…I don't remember."

"You don't?" Nathan says, finding it hard to believe by the frightened look on his son's face.

"No…really I don't. I'm okay, but I'm tired. I just want to go back to sleep."

"Okay, sweetie." Haley agrees. "You get some sleep, but we'll be right down the hall if you need us."

"I'll be okay, Mom. It was just a bad dream, remember?"

Haley smiles and kisses her son's cheek before standing up.

"Sleep tight then, buddy." Nathan says before following Haley out of the room and closing the door.

James slowly lies back down in his bed. He looks over at his nightstand at a professional photo of his family taken recently. He reaches for the frame and stares at it closer, particularly at Haley, when he lies back down.

"It was just a dream." He says. "That's all…just a dream."


	5. Chapter 4: Blackmail

**A/N: Sorry it's been so long guys...i hit major writer's block and then got stuck trying to figure out how to start a new story. But I wrote and wrote until I jsut couldn't stay awake last night and I finally have something for you. I really hope you enjoy this chapter and I can't wait to read what yuo think, so don't forget to review. Thanks!**

**Chapter Four: **_Blackmail _

**SIX WEEKS LATER**

_Finally everything is coming together. All my preparations and plans are complete and ready to go off and I'm finally going to get my revenge. The day is set and I have complete confidence that I will succeed without anything going wrong this time. The situation is a little more delicate than I'd like with Haley as she, although that may actually hurt Nathan hurt even more. So I guess this is the perfect time. The only thing left now is a little assurance and protection… _

Dan walks up to the desk of the hospital.

"Excuse me." He says to a young blond nurse. "I need to see Doctor Dager."

"Specifically Doctor Dager or a doctor?" The nurse replies.

"Doctor Dager. I'm a patient and he called and asked me to come in today."

"Okay…you can wait for him in Exam Four." The nurse agrees before leading him to the exam room.

"I'm sorry," the nurse, says when they enter the room. "What is your name?"

"Thomas Allen." Dan replies.

"Okay…the doctor will be in with you shortly." She says before leaving.

And about ten minutes later, the light brown haired doctor enters the room and as he does, he is looking down at a chart and he says, "Okay Mr. Allen…what seems to be the—"

He stopped when he sees Dan standing before him with a smirk on his face.

"Hello doctor." Dan says. "Long time no see."

The doctor swallows hard and glances behind him before turning back to Dan, who says, "Don't worry, doc…no one recognizes me or knows who I really am."

"What are you doing here?" Doctor Dager asks nervously. "You're not supposed to be here."

"Not the warm welcome I was expecting, Doctor."

"You're supposed to be dead…you are dead to this hospital and the police and if they find out you're not and that I lied, I could—"

"Lose your license to practice medicine and even your family?" Dan finishes with another sly smirk.

Doctor Dager stares at him, knowing Dan wants something again, wants to blackmail him. He finally speaks, "What do you want?"

Dan continues smiling and he replies, "I want your help with something."

"So how have you been feeling?" Haley's doctor asks as she sets Haley's chart on the counter.

"Pretty good for being eight months pregnant." Haley replies as she pushes herself back on the table.

"Good. Now let's see how your baby is doing." The doctor says as she turns out the lights and walks over to Haley and the ultra sound machine.

"Have you and Nathan picked out any names yet?" The doctor makes conversations as she maneuvers the paddle across Haley's abdomen and watches the screen for the baby.

"A couple." Haley replies, also watching the screen. "We haven't agreed on one specific name yet."

"Well, you've got some time." After another minute, they see the baby and the doctor turns up the volume to hear the heartbeat. "There we are. Everything looks great, Haley. He has a really strong heartbeat and the weight is healthy and the position is perfect."

"Oh good." Haley sighs as the doctor turns off the machine. "I've been having some contractions lately and I was afraid something might be wrong with the baby."

"Nope…he is just fine. You were probably just experiencing Braxton-Hicks."

"Yeah, I figured as much. But you know Nathan…he freaks out about everything and made me move my appointment up to today."

Her doctor chuckles as she turns on the light and she says, "A lot of fathers are like that."

"Even with the fifth child?" Haley smiles.

"Well there isn't anything to worry about other than stress. That's the most important thing at this point; to make sure you remain stress free as possible. I know that's hard with four children, but do your best. After the trouble you had with your last pregnancy, we want to avoid another premature birth as best we can."

"Definitely." Haley agrees as she sits up. "Today was my last day_ of work for the next few months, so I've already relieved that stress. The other nurses were sad to see me leave, but I'm just excited to have some time with my family and the new baby for the next few months." _  
_"Well good. Just remember to take it easy and not worry about too much for the next couple months and you should be just fine."_

"_You must be crazy. I can't come with you; I can't help you with that. What you're talking about doing, it's…crazy, not to mention illegal."_

"_Illegal didn't seem to bother you the last time I asked you for help." Dan replies._

"_No…that was different…I can't. I have a life now…I have a family to think about now."_

"_Yes, but you wouldn't have that family if it weren't for me. If I hadn't given back to you, from my own pockets, all the money you gambled away, you might not have a wife now and certainly not those adorable children. And how do you think your wife would react to find out her beloved, goodie doctor husband is a criminal?"_

"_Are you threatening me, Mr. Scott?"_

"_Me? Never."_

"_Why are you doing this? Why do you need me to help you? Why can't you find someone else?"_

"_Because you are the only person who knows I am alive and you did so well wit that, I believe you'll do the same with this favor."_

"_This isn't a favor, what you're blackmailing me to do, it's breaking the law and forcing me to abandon my family."_

"_Oh just tell them you're leaving on a business trip to help really sick families and you don't know when you'll be back."_

"_From what you've told me about this plan of yours. It doesn't really sound like you need me. You can carry it out on your own."_

"_You're right. But I only need you for your skills and knowledge is medicine. The situation is more delicate now and I need you for protection and assurance that everything will go smoothly. You see…I am going to succeed this time…I'm going to get my revenge on my sons and you're going to help make sure that everything goes as I have planned."_

"_Please don't make me do this." Dager pleaded. "Don't make me abandon my life and my family."_

"_Okay…it's your decision. And so is what happens as a result of that decision."_

**_A/N 2: Coming up in the next chapter...; Haley attempts to get Cooper to spend some time with her...and Brooke and Lucas have a fight...and coming up very soon...Dan will make his move. muahhhhhh! Can't wait can you? LOL_**


	6. Chapter 5: Conversations

**Chapter Five:**_ Conversations_

"_Hey, you've reached my cell phone. I can't take your call right now, so please leave a message and I'll get back to you as soon as I can."_

"Damn it, Lucas." Brooke says as she takes the cordless phone from her ear and moves around the kitchen, with Megyn tailing behind, her light brown pigtails bouncing on her head.

"Awe…" Megyn chimes, covering her mouth. "Mommy, you said two bad words."

"I know baby, I'm sorry." Brooke says as she closes the lid to a purple toddler cup and hands it to her four year old and says, "Here's your juice, baby. Now can you go play nicely with your sister in the living room please?"

"Sure, Mommy." Megyn agrees before running into the next room.

Brooke picks up the phone again and dials another number.

"Hello?" Haley answers at the other end.

"Hey Hales, it's your sister-in-law." Brooke says with a sigh.

"Hey Brooke."

"Sorry I forgot to call you back. It's been hectic here today with the kids and chores and well, you know what I'm talking about."

"Oh, it's okay. I just wondered if you wanted to come with me and Sophia to run some errands this afternoon. Nathan's working and you've seemed busy lately so I thought you could use a break."

"Oh I so could. I think I will go with you…if my husband ever gets home."

"Where is Luke?"

"That's what I'd like to know. He had this school board meeting this morning and he said he might stop by the River Court on his way home, but he should've been back by now and I'm kind of pissed because I have to get to work today too. Is there any chance he's with Nathan?"

"I don't think so. Nathan's working today."

"Okay." Brooke sighs. "I guess I'll try his cell again."

Brooke hears something shatter in the living room, followed by the screaming of little voices and Haley says on the other end, "What was that?"

"My adorable twins fighting again nit sounds like."

"Oh, then I guess I'll let you go. You want to meet me here or want me to meet you at your store?"

"Um…the store is better. That way I can work til you get there since it looks like I'm opening late today."

"Okay, no problem. How's about we meet you around 3:30?"

"Sure. See you then." Brooke says before clicking off the phone and rushing to the living room, where the twins are trying to pull a doll away from each other.

"Hey, what is going on in here?" She asks, seeing the broken picture frame on the floor in front of the end table and the twins.

"Ashlyn took my doll!" Megan answers, still pulling on the doll!

"No, Megyn took it from me!" Ashlyn argues and Brooke sighs.

"Oh my god…I so can't take it anymore!" She whispers to herself, before attempting to pry the girls away from the doll each other.

------ ---->>>>>

"Are you sure?" Haley asks through the phone. "Because I'm going out in a little while with Brooke to run some errands and I can swing by and pick them up."

"No, it's fine." Peyton replies at the other end. "James and Riley are having a good boys time playing video games with Jake and I don't think we're going to be able to pry Katie away from Dress Up with Anna and Jess."

Haley chuckles and says, "Okay, but I know what a handful even two of my kids can be on top of your three and one of Brooke's…"

"Haley, don't worry about it. I've got Jenny and Jake helping me out and the kids are behaving great. Besides…you've got Sophia clinging to you and you said you have errands to run, right? So maybe you can use a little longer break from the rest of your brood."

"I just told Brooke the same thing. She's like so stressed out right now with work and the kids and she's kind of ticked at Lucas for being gone all day."

"Yeah…I noticed how stressed she is too. Hey…how about after you guys go to the bank or the store or wherever it is you're going, we meet up for dinner and the exchanging of the children at Karen's?"

Haley laughs again and says, "Okay…sounds good. We should be done around six o'clock. Do you want to meet around then?"

"Sure. We'll see you then."

Haley clicks off the phone as Cooper leaves his downstairs bedroom.

"Hey sweetie." Haley says. "What are you up to today?"

"Nothing, probably. I would like to have band practice, but my whole band with the exception of Kelcee and me are still on vacation. And Kelcee has been busy, so practice is canceled until they all get back."

"I'm sorry. But hey…if you want to get out of the house for a while, you can come with Sophia, Brooke and me to run some errands. Maybe we can even stop by the barber shop…"

Cooper smiles and says, "Mom…I don't want a hair cut. I like my hair long like this…so do the girls."

Haley chuckles and says, "Oh, I know you do. I was just kidding. You're still very handsome with long hair. But you can still come with us if you want. We'll probably go after Sophia wakes up from her nap."

"Well, what's dad doing?"

"He's working late tonight. He's trying to get in some extra hours before the baby gets here. So we're on our own tonight. James and Katie are still at Peyton's, but we're going to meet them for dinner at Karen's. You can see Kelcee…I'm sure she has to stop being busy to eat dinner or help her parents out at the café."

Cooper nods, smiles and says, "Okay, I haven't talked to her in awhile…I'll go. But can we stop at the record store too? There's this new CD I want to get. I saved up my allowance."

"Okay. We have a few other places to go first, but we can stop by."

"Thanks, Mom."

-------- ---------->>>>>>

Lucas enters his home from the garage and hears Brooke moving around the kitchen. He sets his bag down on the washer and enters the kitchen as Brooke closes the door to the dishwasher.

"Hey babe." He says, moving around the island counter. "Where are the girls?"

"Jess is at Peyton and Jake's and the twins are taking their nap." Brooke replies, her back still facing him as she starts the dishwasher.

"A nap, huh?" Lucas smiles as moves closer to his wife. She finally looks at him as he finishes, "Maybe we can take one too."

He leans in to kiss her lips, but before he can, Brooke turns her head and he barely gets her cheek.

"What? No kiss?" Lucas says when Brooke walks away from him and over to the table.

"I have to get to work." Brooke replies, picking up her purse and keys.

"Okay…but don't you have two seconds to kiss your husband? I mean, the great thing about owning your own business is you go in when you want to."

"Yeah, and I wanted to go in earlier, but you weren't home when you said you'd be home."

"Look…I'm sorry I'm late and that I didn't call…my phone died and I was hanging with the guys at the River Court. But I don't understand why you're so pissed at me for being late."

"It's not about that, Lucas…it's a hell of a lot more than that. I don't even care that you were late anymore. I care that you weren't home to help me with the kids and the house."

"Brooke…you know I couldn't miss that meeting today, I—"

"It's not about today, Lucas, at least not just today. You've been out of the house a lot lately."

"Yeah…working."

"No! Not just working." Brooke throws her purse and keys back on the counter and she waves her hands in the air as she continues to argue with him. "It's still summer and you're a teacher, who's summer schooling teaching ended a month ago. I know you've had meetings, but you've also been out with your friends to the River Court or out for drinks with your colleagues, while I've been at home, stressed out with keeping the house in order and keeping the girls from tearing each other's heads off or breaking yet another something."

"Brooke…" Lucas says more calmly as he moves closer to her. "Why haven't you talked to me about this before?"

"Like I said…I've been busy with the house and the kids and appointments and the store and trying to finish my designs and…God, it's all just too much to handle by myself. I hate being this stressed."

"Brooke…I'm sorry, I—"

"I know." Brooke sighs, picking up her purse again. "But I need a break from this right now. I can't argue about this anymore right now. I'm meeting Haley and we're going to run some errands, so you need to take care of the girls when they wake up and I'll bring Jess home with me later."

Brooke heads for the garage door off the laundry room, but Lucas follows her and she stops and looks back at him when he says, "Brooke, wait…we need to talk about this. We need to work this out."

Brooke nods, "We will…later. I've been here all day and I really, really need a break because I don't want to yell at you anymore."

Lucas watches as she closes the door behind her.

"Damn it!" He says angrily to himself, pounding his fist against the door.

**a/n: Hey guys, sorry to leave you on bit of a cliffy, but I thought it was a good way to lead into the next chapter, which I have to get back to writing. I think Dan might make his move in this next chapter, possibly leaving you with another cliffy LOL. I'm not sure yet though. But I do know I have to write and see how it goes. So it might be a few days before you see another update because I not only have to write, but also babysit, start getting ready for school to start and update some other stories. So please keep checking for an update and I promise you won't have to wait as long as before. (If it comes to that, I'll post an author's note LOL) So please review cuz i love it when you do!**


	7. Chapter 6: Family Reunion

**a/n: Here is the update you have all been anxiously waiting for. Let me tell you...it was NOT easy to write. I actually rewrote it a couple times. Please understand it's not perfect and maybe not that realistic (you'll see what i mean). I did the best i could thought and i am kind of proud of the many hours i put in on just this chapter. I only have to warn you that there is some violence and a couple bad words...and a cliff hanger. Please enjoy and don't forget to review!**

_**Chapter Six: **Family Reunion_

"I didn't want to argue with him about it anymore, so I just left and now I think he's mad at me." Brooke finishes telling Haley about her argument with Lucas as she rides in the passenger seat of Haley's minivan, with Cooper and Sophia in the back seat.

"I'm sure he's not." Haley says assuring. "He's probably sitting at home feeling angry and guilty with himself and waiting for you to come home so he can apologize and work through everything with you."

"Knowing Lucas, you're probably right. You know…I don't even think I'm really mad at him as much as I am the stress."

Haley chuckles, "I understand that feeling."

Brooke looks down when she hears Haley's cell go off and Haley says, "Oh, can you answer that for me?"

"Sure." Brooke agrees, taking the phone from the cup holder and answering, "Haley's phone."

"Haley's husband." The caller responds jokingly. "May I speak to my wife please?"

"Yeah, hang on a second." Brooke chuckles. She holds the phone out for Haley and says, "It's your hubby."

Haley smiles as she takes a hand off the steering wheel to take the phone.

"Hey baby." She says into the cell.

"Hey hun."Nathan replies, smiling at the other end." I'm on my lunch break and I wanted to call and see how you're doing."

"I'm fine. I've got Cooper and Sophia and Brooke with me and we're going to hit the bank, the store and then go to dinner with Peyton and Jake and the kids."

"Wow…sounds like you are busy. I'll let you go, but I missed you and just wanted to call and tell you I love you."

"Well I'm glad you did because I was just dying to tell you I love you and miss you too."

Haley can hear him smile as he says, "You're amazing. I can't wait to get home and kiss you tonight, but unfortunately I have to go protect the city now."

"Okay, sweetie. Be careful."

"I will. You be careful too. I love you."

"I love you too."

"I want chicken fingers, Dad." Megyn says as she and her sister hold Lucas's hands as they al step inside Karen's Café.

"And I want grilled cheese." Ashlyn says.

Lucas smiles at his sixteen-year-old sister, Kelcee and his mother, who are both, smiling at him from behind the counter.

"Got your hands full bro?" Kelsey says glancing down at her nieces.

"Yeah." Lucas sighs.

"Hi Aunt Kelsey!" Megyn waves to Kelsey.

"Hi Nana!" Ashlyn waves to Karen.

"Hey girls." Karen says, walking around the counter with a wider smile. "Are you going to come give me a big hug or what?"

Both twins smile and run over to hug Karen as Lucas asks, "So where's Dad?"

"At home." Kelsey replies. "He wasn't feeling well today."

Lucas sits down on a stool at the counter in front of his sister, who pushes some of her shoulder length golden brown hair behind her ear.

"Long day?" She asks and Lucas answers with a long stare. "Whoa…guess so."

"Do you two want to color while you wait for your dinner?" Karen asks as she stands up, holding her granddaughters' hands.

"Yeah!" Both girls say in unison and Karen leads them to a booth after grabbing a bin full of coloring books and crayons stashed under the counter.

"Mom, you really spoil them too much." Lucas says when Karen returns to the counter.

"Why? Because I keep a bin full of fun stuff for them to do when they come to see me here?"

"You never made me a fun bin." Lucas says.

"Yeah, me either." Kelsey agrees, putting dirty dishes into another bin.

Karen smiles and says, "Well neither of you were ever that excited to be here. Besides, I'm their grandma…it's my job to spoil them."

Lucas snickers and Karen continues, "So where's my oldest granddaughter and my daughter-in-law?"

"Jessilin is with Peyton and Jake and Brooke is out with Haley because, well…she's ticked at me."

"Uh, oh," Kelsey responds, smiling at her brother. "What did you do now?"

"I think it's more about what I haven't done."

"I can't believe I'm helping you do this." Marcus Dager says to Dan from the passenger seat of Dan's black van.

"Well you made the right decision, Marcus." Dan replies, grinning. "No wonder your family is so proud of you."

"Can you at least tell me how long I'm going to be away from my family?"

Dan looks up from the notepad he's been writing in since arriving and he smiles and says, "I'm not exactly sure, Marcus…as long as it takes."

"As long as what takes?"

"However long it takes for my sons to understand the consequences of their actions. However long it takes for their happiness to be destroyed."

"But they don't even know you're alive."

"Oh, but they will."

"Well don't you think their happiness will be destroyed just in finding out you're not actually dead?"

"No…that will just shock them. It won't teach them anything. I have to hit their weaknesses and take away from them what they took away from me…which both happen to be family."

"Whatever…Can we just do this before the police show?"

"Relax, doc. We have to wait for the ladies to arrive. And we want the police to show, but they won't until after we are long gone with Brooke and Haley. Now, I want you to get in the back and make room for them while I finish this. When I leave, you get up here and be ready to drive off when I bring the girl back here. We're going to have to speed out of town once we have them."

"Mommy, I want to go inside with you." Sophia whines to Haley when they arrive in the bank parking lot. "Can I please come in too?"

"No, sweetie, we're only going in for a few minutes." Haley replies, unbuckling her seatbelt and Brooke doing the same. "You stay out here with your brother and I'll bring you back a sucker, okay?"

"Fine." Sophia puts, crossing her arms in her car seat. " Bu if he ignores me the whole time, I want his sucker too."

Haley and Brooke chuckle as they leave the car. Sophia watches them enter the bank. She turns her head when she hears her brother's voice.

"Damn!"

"Awe…that's a bad word, Cooper!" She responds.

""So what…my battery died." Cooper says, removing his headphones.

"I'm telling mommy when she comes back."

Cooper stuffs his mp3 player into this jean shorts pocket and Sophia taps his shoulder, "Hey Coop?"

"What?"

"Who's that man out there?"

"What man?"

Sophia points out the window on the left side of the van and replies, "That man following mommy and aunt Brooke inside."

Cooper leans over his sister and looks out her window and when he sees the man's face he utters, "Not possible."

He hasn't seen that face in years, not since he was little, but he still recognizes him. And isn't he supposed to be dead?

"What's a matter, Coop?" Sophia wonders as Cooper sits back quickly and unfastens his seat belt.

"Nothing, sis." He replies calmly, so not to worry her. He opens the sliding door on his side and climbs out of the van.

"Cooper, where you going?"

"I have to go inside and get mom and Brooke. You stay here okay? Stay in your seat."

"Wait, Coop, wait!" Sophia cries, struggling in her seat as her brother slides the door closed again. "Mommy! Cooper!"

Inside the bank, Dan is watching Brooke and Haley from around the corner as they approach the teller at the counter.

_Okay…just a few more minutes now and they'll both be mine. I'll finally have them in my control and away from Lucas and Nathan. When they walk back this way to leave, I'll step out in front of them and will take them by complete surprise and shock and then I will somehow scare them into coming with me. How I will do that, I haven't decided yet, but I'll know when it hits me. Yes…it will work perfectly, I'm sure of it. There is nothing stopping me now._

"What the hell are you doing here?" Dan turns when he hears someone speak to him and he is face to face with Nathan…no, not Nathan, but Cooper. _Spitting image of Nathan, despite how long his hair is._

"You better watch how you talk to me, son." He replies. "You have no idea who you're dealing with."

"Actually, I do." Cooper says. "You're the psycho who kidnapped my little brother five years ago. What I don't get is what you're doing back here. You're supposed to be dead."

"Well, I'm back, kid. I'm back for my revenge." Dan glances around the corner and sees Haley and Brooke starting to walk in his direction. He looks back at Cooper and an idea strikes him when Cooper says, "No…you leave them alone. You better not lay a hand on my mom or my aunt."

"Oh, I won't. I won't have to now that you're here. Looks like you're going to help me out as well as them." Dan smiles and pulls out a gun.

Cooper glances at it and tries to run.

"Mom!" He screams as Dan pulls him back and holds him against his own body, pointing the gun at his head.

Haley and Brooke stop dead in their tracks when they see Dan and their jaws drop.

"Oh my god, Cooper!" Haley says, frighteningly as she tries to move closer to help him, but Brooke pulls her back on impulse to protect her.

Don't move or I'll kill him." Dan threatens, pressing Cooper tighter against him.

"No…" Haley whimpers, standing closer to Brooke as others in the bank move away from the situation. "Don't hurt him, please…"

"If you both cooperate and come with me, no one will get hurt."

"Come with you where?" Brooke asks. "What do you want from us?"

"Nothing…just you."

"No!" Cooper yells, elbowing Dan in the stomach before attempting to run for his mom and Brooke again. But Dan pulls him back by his arm as he drops the gun he was holding and he pulls out a knife, which he presses against Cooper's neck.

"No, don't!" Haley screams. "Let him go, please…I'll do whatever you want. Just please…don't hurt him."

"No, Mom. Don't go with him. I'll be okay. Just get away."

"No way…I'm not going to let him hurt you."

"Smart choice." Dan says as he pulls a folded piece of paper from his pocket with his free hand and tossing it on the floor. He sees two security guards rushing toward him and he quickly picks up the gun and points it at the officers and says, "No harm done here, boys…we're just having a little family reunion."

He looks back at Brooke and Haley and says, "Now…we are going to walk out those doors and walk around to the back parking lot by the ATMs and get into the van waiting out there. And not one of you in here is going to follow us or young Cooper here will pay the price, got it? Let's go…I believe the police and my sons should be arriving soon."

Holding tight to each other, Brooke and Haley follow Dan's instructions and Dan follows close behind. As they walk around the building, Haley glances at her van and a tear falls down her cheek as she hears her baby screaming her name from inside the van.

**a/n 2: I know you're gonna be mad, but it might be a little bit before you see another update. I have some other stories at other sites that i promised to update when i got this far on this story. also...i have some writing to do on this one and some ideas to develop...mainly how Lucas and Nathan will discover thier loves are missing and also how they will react to find out Dan's still alive...as you see...i am going to be vbery busy working on that on top of getting ready for school to start and i still have Senior pictures to prepare for :grin: i'm excited about that. anyway...please hit that review button and let me know how you liked this chapter.**


	8. Chapter 7: An Eerie Feeling

**a/n: Sorry it's been so long guys. like isaid before, i had other stories to work on. plus, i had a little bit of trouble with some stuff in this chapter. but i hope you like.**

_**Chapter Seven: **An Eerie Feeling_

"Nathan!"

He looks up from filing paperwork at his desk when he hears his name.

"We've got a situation down at the bank." His boss and stepfather, Robert Stevens says as he approaches.

"A hold up?" Nathan responds.

"No, actually. The guys we had respond to the alarm said security and the others in the bank witnessed a man come in and pull a gun on a kid before forcing him and two women out of the bank. We need to get down there and assess the situation and get some statements. So find Adams and meet me down there."

Rob walked away as Nathan stood up, with the sense of something bad going on, a strange eerie feeling. But there's no time to worry about a feeling when he's needed on the job and at the bank.

"I didn't realize how stressed she's been." Lucas says after he finished telling his mom and sister about his argument with Brooke. "And what's worse…most of her stress is because I haven't done much to help her."

"It sounds like you haven't done anything to help her." Kelsey jokes and Karen smacks her arm.

"Ow! Sorry."

"I don't know what to do about this, Mom. How do I make it up to her?"

"Well, honey," Karen begins. "All you can do is apologize to her and just be around more and do the things she needs you to do and maybe even give her a break from it all for a week or two."

Lucas nods and says, "Maybe I should give her more like a month or two. I mean, I haven't seen her this stressed or that angry in a really long time."

Karen stares at her son curiously and asks, "Well, do you think there might be something else going on with her that's adding to her stress?"

"What do you mean?"

At that moment, the café bell chimes and a little girl yells to Lucas as she runs to him.

"Daddy!"

Lucas turns around and his oldest daughter jumps into his arms.

"Hey Jess." He says with a smile as Jake and Peyton enter with Anna, Riley, James and Katie, followed by Jenny with the baby seat in hand with a sleeping Ellie strapped in.

"I missed you, Dad." Jessilin says.

"I missed you too. Did you have fun? Were you good?"

"Yes. Where's mommy and Meg and Ash?"

"Megyn and Ashlyn are eating at the table, but your mom isn't here."

"Why don't you go sit with them and I'll make you some macaroni." Karen suggests, smiling at her granddaughter.

"Okay." Jessilin agrees as Lucas puts her down. "Come on Anna, c'mon Riley."

The kids run over and sit in the booth with the twins.

"Hey uncle Lucas." James says, holding his little sister's hand.

"Hey, bud. Hey, Katie. How's it going?"

"Good." James replies, slapping his uncle's hand. "Is my mom and aunt Brooke here yet?"

"No, are they coming here?" Lucas looks up at Peyton and Jake as Jenny walks past him and sets the baby seat on the counter to visit with Kelsey.

"Yeah…" Peyton replies. "They were going to the bank and the store and then meeting us here."

"Brooke didn't tell you?" Jake wonders.

Lucas shakes his head and says, "No, we sort of had a fight before she left. All she told me was she was going with Haley. What time did they say they'd be here?"

Peyton glances up at the clock on the wall above the door, looks back at Lucas and says, "About fifteen minutes ago."

The eerie feeling is still with Nathan when he and his partner, Greg Adams arrive on scene at the bank. A few other squad cars are there and a few of their coworkers are questioning witnesses. Nathan watches one cop walk over to the captain with a sketchpad in hand.

"This is weird right?" Adams says as the both leave the car. "A guy walks into the biggest bank in town and takes three hostages but no money? What do you think that's about?"

"I don't know." Nathan replies as they walk away from the car. "Let's try and find out."

Still unable to shake his bad feeling, Nathan and Adams approach the group of other cops, among them is Rob.

"So what's happening now with the situation? Do we know who the guy is?" Nathan asks and Rob looks up at him with a concerned and worried expression.

Nathan looks around at the rest of coworkers and friends and they have the same look on their faces.

"What is it?" He asks, that eerie feeling still growing stronger. "Was someone hurt?"

"Nathan," Rob says, rubbing his forehead. "It's Dan."

Johnson holds out a sketchpad for Nathan to see the sketch of Dan's face, which was drawn based on the description of a witness. _Impossible_…Nathan shakes his head and says, "Dan? No…it can't be. It's impossible. He's dead. He's been dead for four and half years."

Rob shakes his head too and he says, "He left this behind before he took them. Nathan…he took Haley and Brooke and we think he may have used Cooper to get them to leave with him."

"What?" Nathan snatches the paper, worried and disbelieving and he is shocked and angry by what is written:

**_TO MY SONS—_**

**_WHAT YOU TOOK FROM ME, LIFE AND HAPPINESS, I NOW TAKE FROM YOU. NO MORE HAPPY ENDINGS FOR ANYONE. THE ONES YOU LOVE BELONG TO ME AND THEIR LIVES ARE IN MY CONTROL. DADDY'S BACK AND THERE'S NO STOPPING ME NOW. SO DON'T COME LOOKING FOR ME OR YOU MIGHT JUST LOSE FOREVER, THE TWO PEOPLE YOU CARE FOR MOST IN THIS WORLD. SOON…_**

**_YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THE LAST OF DAN SCOTT_**

"Haley…" Nathan looks up at the others. He crumbles the paper in his fist in anger and he finally understands that eerie feeling.

**a/n2: So? What'd yo think? Review and tell me please! I will try to update again soon, but it might not be as often as it has been since school is about to start again for me. I will still try to update when ever i can. Thanks! Now go review :lol:**


	9. Chapter 8: Where Are They?

**a/n: Hey guys...sorry it took so long for this chapter...i tried to post it a few days ago, but it wasn't working. so here it is...and just want to let you guys know that I changed Sophia's name to Chloe Sophia Scott because i like the name chloe more and i met this little girl named chloe who matches my description of sophia exactly...so i hope it doesn't confuse anyone too much, Don't forget to review after you read! thanks.**

**Chapter Eight: **_Where Are They?_

"_Hey, you've reached my cell. Sorry I missed your call. I was working or cleaning or playing mom, but if you leave a message. I'll call you back."_

"Hey, Brooke, it's me…again. I know you're mad at me right now, but I really need to talk to you. And I'm getting worried about you and Haley. Everyone's waiting for you at the café, including the girls and me. So please call me back as soon as you get this. I love you, babe."

"Still no answer?" Peyton asks as she burps Ellie on her shoulder. She is standing in front of Lucas, Jake and Jenny all sitting on counter stools. Karen and Kelsey are standing behind the counter.

"Nope, just her voicemail." Lucas sighs. "But I'm kind of hoping she's just ignoring my calls. She's pretty pissed at me."

"Maybe she is, but I got her voicemail when I called too." Peyton says, passing the baby to Jake.

"Ugh…where the hell are they?" Lucas says in frustration as he runs his hands over his face.

"Luke, calm down." Kelsey suggests. "They're probably just running late."

"Haley? Late?" Lucas replies. "Never. Not even with being married to my brother and a mother to four and a half children. Nothing slows her down or makes her late."

"Hey, why don't you call Nathan." Jake suggests. "Maybe he's heard from Haley about where they are."

"Good idea." Lucas says, pulling out his cell phone again.

As he is dialing, Karen interrupts, turning up the volume on the small television sitting on the counter.

"Hey, listen to this." Everyone's attention is directed to the news report.

"It was a strange and a disturbing occurrence today at Tree Hill Union Bank. This afternoon, Tree Hill Police say they responded to an alarm for what they believed to be a heist. But when they arrived on scene, witnesses hurrying away from the bank reported the man came in, waited for two women, pulled a gun on a young teenage boy and threatened to kill him if the two women did not come with him.

"The strangest part of this story is that the man apparently left the bank with the three hostages, but no cash. Some witnesses said he seemed to have no intention whatsoever of robbing the bank. To them, it seemed he came in just looking for hostages. Authorities investigating this story believe they have identified the attacker and his hostages, though they have not yet released any names."

"Oh my god…" Peyton gasps.

Lucas turns away from the television, his heart growing heavier as fear overwhelms him. Two women and a young teenage boy…oh god, please don't let it be them.

"Peyton," he says, looking at her. She looks as concerned as he is. "You said Brooke and Haley were going to the bank?"

Peyton nods and with a weak voice she replies, "But it can't be them. They have Coop and Chloe with them and—"

"I have to get down there." Lucas interrupts. He glances at his kids, laughing at the table. Then he looks at his mom and sister. "Mom, Kelsey, can you—"

"Yeah, honey. We'll watch them. You go on."

Lucas rushes out the door, leaving the others there to worry, including a scared young blond Scott watching them from a table with his sister and cousins.

"It can't be them." Peyton says, assuring herself as Jake hugs her. "I mean, it's Brooke and Haley. They would've been long gone before that happened, right?"

"Let's hope so." Karen mumbles.

"How the hell are we supposed to find them now?" Nathan yells at his stepfather as he paces in front of his squad car." Nobody followed him and now we have no idea what he's driving or where he took them."

"I know, Nathan." Rob says. "But you really need to calm down."

"Calm down? How the hell am I supposed to do that? That psycho bastard has my pregnant wife, my fourteen-year-old son and my sister-in-law and—oh man, I have to call Lucas. He needs to know what's going on."

"I already know." Lucas says from behind them and they turn around. He steps up closer to his brother and speaks with fear in his voice and showing it in his eyes. "Where are they?"

"He took them, Luke." Nathan answers sadly.

"Who?"

Nathan holds out the crumpled paper. Lucas takes it from him, opens it and reads. Rob and Nathan wait for his reaction. Lucas looks back at them when he finishes.

"Who the hell wrote this?"

"Dan." Rob answers, showing him the sketch.

Lucas stares at it for a minute, trying to understand. But he can't.

"How is this even possible? He's dead. You told us he was killed in that accident. And now we find out that he's not four years later when he kidnaps my wife and half of Nathan's family?"

"I don't know what happened, Lucas. We tracked Dan all the way to that accident and followed the ambulance to the hospital. And we were told by the same doctor who treated James that Dan had died from injuries caused by that accident."

"Luke, I don't know what happened either. This is all really screwed up. But I do know we have to figure out how to find him now because he has Brooke, Haley, Cooper and—"

Chloe…his little girl crosses his mind. Where is she? Damn, why didn't he think about here before?

"What is it, Nate?" Lucas asks worriedly. "What's wrong?"

"Chloe…when I talked to Haley earlier, she said she Chloe and Cooper with her. Rob, you said he took three people, Haley, Brooke, and Cooper. What about Chloe? Where is she?"

"I don't know…" Rob replies, growing concerned too. "Everyone we questioned said he left with those three. No one saw him take a little girl."

"Oh my god…where is my daughter? What did he do with her?"

Nathan looks around as other cops stand around. He stops turning and stares at the familiar dark green mini van parked in front of the building. He runs toward it, Lucas and Rob running close behind. As he comes closer to the van, Nathan's heart is still pounding like a giant drum, even more as he hears his little girl crying inside.

"Chloe," he whispers as he slides the door open and Lucas and Rob reach the van.

The short, dark haired, dark eyed little girl starts screaming louder when she sees her father and she reaches for him.

"Oh thank god." Nathan says as he quickly unstraps her and lifts her from the car seat. "Thank god you're okay."

She grasps him tight once in his arms and she is still screaming when she lays her head on his shoulder, burying her face in his uniform shirt.

"Is she okay?" Lucas asks, touching his niece's head sensitively as Nathan rubs her back, trying to soothe her.

"I think so." Nathan replies, still trying to settle her screams. "Shh…it's okay, baby. I don't think she's hurt."

"Are you sure?" Rob asks, stepping on the other side of Nathan.

"Yeah, yeah…she's just scared. Shh…"

"More like terrified." Lucas says.

Nathan sits down on the floor of the van, breathing heavily as Chloe remains on his shoulder and Nathan is still rubbing her back in an attempt to relax her and settle her fears.

"It's okay, Chloe. It's all right; you're okay now…daddy's got you. It's going to be okay."


	10. Chapter 9: How to Tell the Ones You Love

**a.n.: Hey guys...sorry it took so long for this chapter too. I got busy babysitting and then school started yesterday and i'm a senior now, so there's a lot of HW piled on somedays LOL. but thankfully, i found time to get the chapter finsished. I think you will enjoy this,even though there are 2 major cliffhangers. **

_**Chapter Nine: **How to Tell the Ones You Love_

"You've been driving for hours. Where the hell are you taking us?" Brooke finally speaks to Dan in the front seat with another strange man who's driving the van.

She is sitting next to Haley against one of the walls of the van. Cooper is sitting across from them against the opposite wall of the van. Several boxes and bags surround them, but the contents of the boxes and bags are unbeknownst to them and all three of them could really care less.

Dan slides open the curtain separating the front seat from the back and he answers Brooke, "I'll tell you that when we get there, sweetheart."

"Don't call me sweetheart. And who the hell is driving this hostage trap?"

"Oh, I'm sorry." Dan replies grinning. "I haven't properly introduced you guys yet, have I? This is Doctor Marcus Dager…and doctor, these are my lovely daughter-in-laws Brooke and Haley and my adorable grandson Cooper."

Marcus glares at Dan, but doesn't say anything. He continues driving along the path Dan instructed him to follow.

"You're a bastard." Cooper says glaring at Dan.

"Cooper!" Haley says warningly, not wanting him to come even close to hurting her son again.

"What? He is."

"Shut up!" Haley orders.

Dan smirks again and says, "Maybe you guys need more time to yourselves to cool off."

"What we need is to go home." Brooke says angrily.

"Try and get some sleep too." Dan continues, ignoring her statement. "We've still got a long drive ahead of us."

Nathan enters his living room and plops down in a leather chair across from the couch where his mother and stepfather are sitting together.

"Is she asleep?" Deb asks, looking at her son.

"Yeah, finally." Nathan replies, covering his face with his hands. He's exhausted but he knows he won't be able to sleep tonight…not without Haley. He pulls his hands away and continues, "She didn't want to fall asleep, though. She didn't want me to put her down or leave her alone. She's never been that freaked out before."

"Poor kid." Rob says. "I hope she's not too traumatized from what she probably saw."

"Yeah, me too. But watching someone take away the people you love…that's something even a three year old can't get out of her mind, especially Chloe. You guys know how attached to Haley she is."

"Maybe you should take her to see someone." Deb suggests. "Like a child psychologist."

Nathan nods and says, "Yeah, I will. I'm going to talk to her pediatrician to see who she recommends, but not until after we figure out how we're going to find Dan."

"Leave that to me and the detectives, Nate. You just take care of the kids."

"No, I mean, I am going to take care of my kids, but I'm also going to help find Dan. The stakes are much higher in this twisted game of his."

All three of them stare at one another in silence. After a minute, Nathan speaks again to his mother.

"How were James and Katie about getting to bed for you?"

"Well, Katie cried for you and Haley at first, but she was out when I came to check on her five minutes later. Jamie didn't want to go to bed though. He wanted to wait up for you. He was worried, but he fell asleep listening to his music."

"I think I'll go check on them." Nathan says as he stands up.

He steps into the hallway, but turns around when his mother calls his name.

"What are you going to tell them tomorrow?"

"I don't know." Nathan sighs. " That's going to be hard, but I know I have to tell them something. The thing is…I don't know how to tell them. How do you tell the ones you love something like this?"

He turns away and continues toward the stairs.

Karen, Keith and Kelsey are waiting for him at the kitchen table when he enters the house through the back door with a somber look. They're quiet, waiting for him to tell them what he knows.

"It was them." Lucas says. "Brooke and Haley and Cooper…they're the hostages."

Karen stands up and hugs her son.

"I'm so sorry, honey." She says.

Keith stands up and asks, "Do they know who took them?"

"Yeah…" He pauses. "Dan."

"What?" All three say in unison.

"Your reaction is the same as mine."

"But how is that possible?" Keith wonders. "He's—"

"Dead? Apparently he's not as dead as we thought and hoped. He left a note for Nathan and me, telling us he's back and that he's going to succeed this time."

"Succeed with what?" Karen asks, still stunned by this revelation.

"Revenge, I think. But I don't know what for. I do know he came looking for Haley and Brooke though. I could tell from the letter. He said their lives are in his control."

Keith shakes his head and says, "I'm sorry, Luke."

"Yeah…me too. God, if he hurts them…"

Karen touches her son's shoulder and he changes the subject, pushing back the tears.

"Are the girls asleep?"

"Yes." Karen replies. "They're in your old room."

Lucas begins walking toward the bedroom, but Karen stops him.

"Honey, why don't you just let them sleep here tonight. You can stay too and get some rest."

"Thanks, Mom. But I really just want to be home tonight and with my girls."

Karen nods and Kelsey speaks, "Well, maybe you could use some help with them, Luke. If you want, I can come home with you and help out with my nieces."

"Look, I can handle my kids by myself." Lucas defends. "I've done it before."

"We know you can." Kelsey says. "But you've got Brooke to worry about now and so will the girls once you tell them. I'm offering to help you and you should always take anything and everything you can get for free. C'Mon Luke, I'm your sister…let me help."

Lucas nods, smiles and says, "Okay. Thanks, sis."

Nathan leaves his daughters' bedroom and closes the door after tucking in both Katie and Chloe and making sure that Chloe was still sleeping okay. He walks across the hall and opens the door to his youngest son's bedroom. The lamp on his nightstand is still on and James is asleep on his pillow with headphones around his blond head and a comic book next to him.

Nathan walks over to the bed and removes the headphones, setting them on the nightstand, along with the comic book. He pulls the covers up over his son and turns off the lamp. He turns and walks away from the bed, but stops at the door when he hears his son's voice.

"Where's mom?"

Nathan turns and looks at James, who has rolled over in the bed to face his father.

"It's late buddy. We'll talk tomorrow."

"Dad…" James says before his father tries to leave again. "I'm ten now. I'm a lot more grown up than you adults think I am."

"I know you are."

"Something happened, didn't it?"

Nathan makes his way across the room again and sits down on the bed and says, "Yeah, Jamie…something happened."

"That guy at the bank…he took mom and Coop and aunt Brooke, didn't he?"

"How'd you hear about that?"

"Everyone was watching the news at the café earlier. I saw it too when I was walking back from the bathroom. Who is it, Dad? Who took them?"

Nathan stares at his son, contemplating what his answer should be. _This is the hard part…_he realizes. What is he supposed to tell him? That the person who took his mother, brother and aunt is the same person who kidnapped him five years ago, the person who he believes to be dead, the person who still haunts his dreams?

"We don't know yet." He answers finally. "But we will. We're going to find them."

James nods, though still unsure if his father is telling him the whole truth. Nathan stands up and says, "You should get some sleep, okay?"

"Okay." James agrees as Nathan walks back toward the door. "Hey, Dad?"

Nathan turns again and his son stares him in the eye all the way from the bed.

"You would tell me if you knew who it was, right?"

Nathan hesitates. _The hard part again…_

"Yeah, son…I would tell you."

James smiles a small smile and says goodnight before Nathan closes the door.

_I'm just protecting him…_he tells himself on his way back downstairs. _It's better that he not know. He still has nightmares over what Dan did to him the last time. I can't let Dan be the reason for more nightmares._

"You still worried about Chloe?" Brooke asks Haley as they still sit in the back of the van. It's darker now and Cooper has fallen asleep across from them, though he tried to stay awake so Brooke and Haley would not be left alone with Dan.

Haley nods and her head brushes up and down on Brooke's shoulder as she leans against her with her legs and swollen feet straight out in front of her and her hands on her stomach, slowly rubbing it.

"She was so scared, Brooke." She says. "I could hear her screaming for me. I've never heard her scream like that before."

"I know. But she'll be okay, honey." Brooke says assuring leaning her head against her friend's head. "I'm sure Nathan found her and is taking care of her and your other kids.

"God, Nathan…I had _just _talked to him. And I left my cell phone in the car. I feel so mad at myself for not bringing it with me. I take it every where with me, but for some stupid reason I didn't this time."

"No…don't be so hard on yourself. I feel guilty too. I left mine at home. I was so angry with Lucas that I totally forgot to grab it. He's probably called it a million and one times by now. I miss him so much right now. I just wish I'd made up with him before I left. I wish I'd told him I love him and I wish I hadn't left him as angry as he probably still thinks I am."

"He knows you love him, Brooke. And he loves you—ow!" Haley springs forward, holding her stomach tighter.

"What is it? What's wrong?" Brooke asks worriedly as Haley breathes in and out deeply.

"Nothing…just another contraction…a stronger one." Haley says through her deep breaths.

"Another contraction? How many have you had?"

"Quite a few actually— ow!" She takes Brooke's hand.

Brooke rests her free hand on Haley's shoulder and asks, "Well, how long? Since when, I mean?"

"Oh…since about the time Dan pulled a knife on my son."

Lucas pushes open the door connecting the garage to the house through the laundry room off the kitchen and he steps inside with Megyn asleep on his shoulder. He tosses his keys on the counter as Jessilin walks sleepily into the kitchen, followed by Kelsey with Ashlyn.

"Daddy…where's mommy?" Jessilin asks, rubbing her eyes.

Lucas glances at his sister, trying to think of what he should say. He can't tell her yet, not now. He looks back at her and says, "She's still out, sweetie. But you need to get to bed. It's way past your bedtime. Go on upstairs and put your pajamas on and I'll come tuck you in after we put your sisters to bed."

"Okay." Jess yawns as she walks away.

Lucas and Kelsey follow her upstairs, each with a twin in their arms. Lucas undresses and dresses Megyn in purple pajamas and tucks her into her toddler bed, while Kelsey does the same for Ashlyn.

"I'm going to go tuck Jess in." He says to his sister as he walks to the door. I'll meet you downstairs."

Jess is already is her bed when Lucas enters her room. Her eyes are closed as he approaches her bed. He kneels down and pulls the covers up over her red nightgown. He stares at her beautifully round face, it's every feature the same as Brooke's. It's like staring at smaller Brooke. He pushes back behind her ear, some of her dark hair and he leans down to kiss her head.

"I love you, Jessilin." He says when he comes up. "And your mom does too."

He watches only a moment longer, seeing Brooke in her still, and he stands up, turns on her nightlight and closes the door only to a crack, just the way she prefers it, on his way out. Kelsey is waiting for him at the counter in the kitchen when he comes back downstairs.

"Hey." She says as Lucas leans against the other side of the counter. "Are you hungry? I could make you something."

"No thanks. I couldn't eat even if I felt hungry. But you can help yourself to anything."

"I'm not hungry either. I just wanted to do something for you."

"You've already done something by offering to help me with the girls."

Kelsey smiles and asks. "Well, can I at least get you a cold soda?"

"Sure." Lucas smiles as Kelsey opens the refrigerator. She passes a Coke to her brother and pulls out a Diet Coke for herself before closing the door.

"Hey look…you've got a message." Kelsey says, walking past the wall counter where the phone sits.

"Oh man, it might've been from Brooke!" Lucas responds, quickly moving toward the counter/

He pushes the play button and both he and Kelsey listen to the answering machine.

"_You have one new message…Friday, 4:02 p.m…"_

"_Hello, this is doctor Patterson calling for Brooke Scott. Brooke, I just wanted to call and let you know that I've gotten your test results back and you were right about why you've been so tired and stressed lately. You are pregnant. Congratulations/ Give me a call when you get this so we can schedule you for an appointment soon."_

"Whoa…" Kelsey says as the machine beeps again, signaling the end of the messages. "Brooke's pregnant again. Did you know?"

Lucas shakes his head as he sits down slowly at the table.

"She didn't…say anything to me." He says as Kelsey sits down in the chair across from him. "I didn't even know she went to the doctor."

"So…what now?"

Lucas wonders the same thing as he stares at his sister with a worried look. He's been just worried about Brooke before, but now he is scared. Not just for Brooke, Haley, Cooper and his unborn nephew, but now for his unborn child as well.

There is so much he fears now. _Where has Dan taken them? What does he want with them? What will he do to them? And will I be able to find them and save them from that monster? What will happen if I can't?_

Kelsey moves closer to her brother and hugs him in her arms as he finally gives up and lets himself breakdown.

**a.n2: I know, I'm totally mean for leaving this chapter like that. i don't know when the next update will be ready...I've still got to write it all and i do get a lot of HW. if it's gonna be awhile, I'll post an authors note. Now please go review! I love hearing your reactions, escpecially after a chapter like this.**


	11. Author's Note

**A/n: hey guys— sorry it's been so long. I know how anxious you all are. I have been busy with school and club stuff, and working on the story in all my free time. I promise to have it up as soon as it is finished.**


	12. Chapter 10: God Only Knows

**a/n: I know...FINALLY! Right? LOL. I think you guys are gonna enjoy this chapter, at least i hop you do. i finally got to write in a memory in this chapter, which is good coinsidering the title of the story OTH Memories: Dan's Return LOL. So go ahead and review when you are done please!**

**Chapter Ten: **_God Only Knows_

"Haley, why didn't you tell me you're in labor?" Brooke asks, putting two pillows she found behind her friend's back.

"Well for one, "Haley replies quietly in almost a whisper as she rests back on the pillows. "I didn't want Dan to know. God knows what he'll do when he finds out. And for another…I was kind of hoping it's a false alarm."

"Well, honey, I don't think you can keep on hoping for that. You're having contractions every nine minutes…that baby is almost ready to be born, whether you're ready for him to be or not."

"I know, but I really don't want to give birth to him in the back of this van, let alone without Nathan here…ow!"

"Another contraction?" Brooke says and Haley nods, breathing deeply again with her eyes closed tight.

"What's going on?" Cooper asks groggily as he sits up. He notices the painful look upon his mother's face as she squeezes his aunt's hand and he says, "Whoa…Mom, are you okay?"

"I will be." Haley sighs when she releases Brooke's hand and rests back on the pillows.

"What's going on back there?" Dan asks, pushing open the curtain.

"Oh no…" Haley says.

"What?" Brooke and Cooper say in unison when they look back at her.

Haley stares at both of them and finishes, "My water just broke."

_Where are they?_

It's all he can wonder about as he lies in bed, staring at the ceiling and feeling uncomfortable and incomplete without Haley right beside him. Where are wife and his son? Are they hurt? And what about the baby? Is he okay? Are he and Haley okay under the stress of the situation?

"I don't know what I'll do if you're not all okay." He says out loud to no one but himself.

_Why is Dan always after us? Why can't he just leave us alone so we can all be happy again?_

He thinks about Haley again and remembers a special night when they were so happy…

_Nathan smiled as he wrapped his arms around Haley in front of the counter and mirror in their bathroom. She smiled back as he kissed her neck._

"_The kids all tucked in?" She asked, turning around and following him out of the bathroom._

"_Yep. The girls are asleep and the boys are in their beds with music, or TV or comic books," Nathan said as he and Haley pulled the covers down on their bed. "But they'll fall asleep soon. It's been a long day."_

"_But a good day right?" Haley said with a smile as she climbed into bed. "You had a good time?"_

"_Definitely." Nathan climbed into bed next to her. "It's been the best birthday yet. Although, I thought people usually throw the surprise party on the 40th birthday."_

"_Well, I'm not most people. Besides, if I'd waited until then, it wouldn't be much of a surprise, would it? So I chose to be a little unorthodox and spontaneous and threw your surprise party four years early."_

_Nathan chuckled and said, "Well, I'm glad you did. I loved it. It was a great surprise."_

_He leaned over and kissed her._

"_Actually, I have one last surprise for you, birthday man." Haley said after their kiss._

"_Oh yeah?"_

_Haley turned away and opened the drawer on her nightstand and pulled from it, a rectangular box the size of her whole hand, wrapped in blue paper. She grinned as she passed it to him._

"_What's this?" He asked, taking the very lightweight package._

"_Open it and see."_

_Nathan smiled as he removed the lid. He glanced at her after getting a look at what was inside. She watched him as he looked back and took the black and white sonogram from the box. Along the white edges of the photo, written in black marker, were the words: HAPPY BIRTHDAY DADDY!_

_He looked at her, still with the same shocked expression, and he said, "Haley, is this— are you…"_

"_Yeah…we're having another one. What do you think?"_

_Nathan shook his head slowly before he smiled and said, "I think this is one hell of a surprise."_

"_Good surprise or bad surprise? 'Cause I know we weren't planning on this, but—"_

"_Are you kidding?" He moved his hand to her cheek. "It's a great surprise. A little unexpected, but still great."_

_Haley smiled back and they kissed again. Then, they cuddled together in bed._

"_Five kids, Nathan…" Haley said after a minute of silence. "How are we going to handle that?"_

"_Together." He replied, her head leaning against his bare chest. "We'll handle it together…always."_

_Together…always, _he had promised her. _We'll handle it together. _Through thick and thin, since the day they were married, they were together on everything. But now they are apart…because of Dan. And God only knows what's happening with them now.

"She needs to be in a hospital." Brooke speaks angrily to Dan, who is standing outside the van door with Marcus Dager after they directed the van into and parked in a secluded area in the woods.

"Why? We've got a great doctor right here." Dan says, glancing at Marcus.

"I don't believe you." Haley says painfully. "All you've ever done is lie."

"Fine…don't believe me. It's your life and your baby's."

"He's telling the truth on this one." Marcus speaks. "I am a doctor and I have delivered several babies before."

"Why should we believe you?" Haley asks. "You helped him kidnap us and you could've stopped him."

"You don't have to believe me or trust me…I understand why you wouldn't. But I can tell you are in a lot of pain and your water did break and you're having stronger contractions, which means you're minutes away from delivering and we are miles from the nearest hospital. I have experience in this area and letting me help you is safer than letting your friend or your son try."

Brooke looks at Haley for an answer and Haley nods as she breathes through another contraction, the second in two minutes. Brooke looks back at the doctor and says, "Okay."

As doctor Dager starts to climb inside the van, Cooper slides in between him and Brooke and Haley.

"No," he says glaring. "You're not coming anywhere near them…either of you."

"Coop…honey…don't…let him." Haley pants.

"No…I'm not going to let him hurt you."

"I won't hurt her, Cooper." Marcus assures. "I promise."

"Bullshit!" Cooper says angrily.

"Cooper!" Brooke says loudly.

"No! I don't care what he says this guy is a fake. You know you can't trust him."

"Maybe you're right, Coop." Brooke says for Haley, holding her friend's hand. "But neither you nor I can do this and your mom needs help. Who would you rather help her…him or Dan?"

"Fine." Cooper says, looking back at Dan and Dager. "As long as that crazy bastard stays out of here."

"You better watch how you talk to me, boy." Dan says as Cooper lets the doctor pass him to help his mother. "Didn't your mother teach you to respect your elders?"

"Of course. But you are not my elder. You're just an old, worthless, ruthless psychotic old man who no one will ever respect."

"Boy, you've got a mouth on you, don't you?" Dan steps up to Cooper, coming face to face with him.

"I get that from my dad. Oh, speaking of my dad…you know he is going to find us. He is going to figure out where you're taking us and he's going to find us, and when he does, he is going to kill you. That is assuming I don't kill you first."

Dan continues grinning at Cooper, amazed by his fearlessness. But he isn't going to stand around and let this _child _insult him anymore, oh no. He looks at doctor Dager preparing to deliver Haley's baby.

"Hey doc," he says, grabbing hold of Cooper's shoulder. "You do what you need to do in here and I'm going to have a chat with young Cooper here about his mouth."

He takes Cooper's other shoulder and pulls him out of the van and walks him around to the back of the van. He pushes him against the van and says angrily, "You think you're pretty tough, don't you?"

"I am. You got a problem with that?" Cooper grins too.

"No, but you will if you keep mouthing off to me and insulting me with your smart ass comments."

"I'm not afraid of you."

"Well, maybe you should be. If you keep up with this behavior, you're not going to be able to protect them or yourself anymore."

"Oh yeah? What are you going to do? Kill me? You don't have the guts."

"I had guts enough to pull both a knife and gun on you, didn't I? You don't think I have guts enough to use them? It wouldn't be the first time."

Dan stops and they both hear a scream of pain from Haley inside the van. Dan looks back at Cooper and says, "And who said anything about you?"

Cooper knows what Dan means by the comment and he says, "No…you keep your hands off of her. You don't hurt her…please."

Dan smiles again and says, "I won't…just as long as you learn some respect for me and understand that I have the power, not you. As long as you keep your mouth shut and do everything I tell you to do, then you won't have to worry about me hurting her. Do we have a deal?"

Unable to confide his fear anymore, Cooper nods his head. Dan smiles because he can see the fear in Cooper's eyes. He loosens his grip on him, but Cooper doesn't move right away, also out of fear. They both look at the van when they hear the first loud screams of a baby.

Dan looks at Cooper and says, "Well…now that you and I have an understanding of how it's going to be from now on, let's go meet that new sibling of yours."

**a/n: So? whadyathink? like it? love it? absolutely hate it? LOL. please review cuz you know i love to read em. another update as soon as i have the time. senior social studies keeps me pretty busy every night LOL. i'll post an author's note if it gets to be too long a wait. thanks for the love :)**


	13. Chapter 11: Missing You

**a/n: Sorry it took so long guys...i was working on this whenever i didn't have homework. i hope you enjoy this and don't forget to click that Review button! Thanks!**

**Chapter Eleven: **_Missing You_

"How'd you sleep last night, Nate?" Keith asks his nephew when Nathan sits down at the table across from him and next to Peyton.

"I didn't." Nathan replies, exhaling sharply. "I don' think I'm going to be able to until we figure this out."

"Well, that's what we're here to do." Rob says, sitting at the end of the table to the right of his stepson. "I think I may have an idea on where to start."

"Can I get you some coffee, Nathan?" Karen offers, standing up from the table.

"Um…sure. Maybe it'll wake me up."

Karen walks to the counter.

"How's Chloe doing today?" Peyton asks, her eyes tear stricken from crying over what's happened to her best friends. Karen returns with a mug full of coffee.

"Thanks," Nathan says to Karen as he takes the cup. "Chloe is the same as she was when I found her yesterday. She hasn't said anything since, but she screams if she's not with me. She woke up very early this morning, screaming from a nightmare and because I wasn't there when she woke up. And she wouldn't let me leave this morning. I managed to get her to let me pass her to my mom, but she was still screaming as I left. I talked to her pediatrician today and he gave me the name of a great child psychologist, so I'm really hoping she can help her."

"I hope so too." Karen says, touching Nathan's hand.

"Me too." Peyton says. "It's so horrible that that poor little girl had to witness that."

"Yeah, it is." Nathan agrees. "But I thank God Dan didn't get her too. I don't think Haley would've been able to handle that."

The café bell chimes and Lucas enters.

"Sorry I'm late." He says, sitting down in between his brother and Peyton. "The girls woke up early and wouldn't let me leave."

"What did you tell them when they asked about Brooke?" Peyton asks.

Lucas sighs and says, "The only thing I could think of to say was that she and aunt Haley went on vacation for a little while. I know…a terrible lie. But how do you tell your seven and four year olds that their mother was kidnapped?"

"I know what you mean." Nathan says. He looks around at everyone and continues, "I lied to James last night. I came home and went up to check on him and Katie and he was awake. He said he saw the news report everyone was watching yesterday. He asked me if I knew who it was that took them and I said I didn't. I lied to my son…I flat out lied to him. I've never done that before."

Lucas sighs sympathetically for his brother and Karen says, "You know…sometimes we have to lie to protect the ones we love. That comes with loving your children and your wives so much. Don't worry…it'll all turn out okay."

"It has too." Lucas says, staring down at the table, deep in thought about Brooke again.

The other five notice his expression and Keith asks, "What is it Luke? What are you thinking about?"

"Brooke." He answers, looking up at them. "She's pregnant."

"You've got to be exhausted, Haley." Brooke says, sitting next to her friend as she holds her new baby boy. They're still in the back of the van, only now the van is on the move again after stopping again for them to have a bathroom break in a secluded area.

"I am." Haley says before yawning. She looks down at her baby and continues, "He obviously isn't. Look at him…he's wide awake."

"He's probably waiting for a name." Brooke says. "He deserves a name, Hales."

"I know." Haley says softly, nodding her head. Her eyes begin to glisten with tears. "But I can't. I can't name him…not without Nathan, It doesn't feel right."

Cooper scoots closer to his mother and wraps an arm around her shoulder.

"I know, Mom." He says. "But it'll be okay. Dad is going to find us and everything will be okay. I know it. But right now…my baby brother needs a name. Don't let Dan take that away from him. Isn't there a name you and dad both like?"

Haley looks back down at her baby and remembers a conversation with Nathan about what his name should be…

"_Nathan! Nathan, stop!" Haley laughed as Nathan tickled her in their bed._

"_Why?" Nathan chuckled. "This is fun."_

"_No…we have to…Nathan, please!" Haley still laughed._

"_Okay."_

_Haley sat up in the bed and said, "Now come on…we have to decide on a name for him."_

"_We still have plenty of time to decide on a name."_

"_No, we don't/ We have four months and we still have so much other stuff we have to do to get ready. And with four other kids, it's hard for you and me to find time when we can sit down together and make a decision."_

"_Okay." Nathan sighed. "You're right. But you know I'll like any name you like."_

"_Oh really?" Haley grinned and said. "I like Billy Bob."_

"_Okay, except for crazy names like that. "Nathan said as he smiled. _

_Haley chuckled and said, "That's what I thought. Seriously though…we have to pick the name together, considering we made the baby together. Here, I made a list."_

_She took the notepad from her nightstand, passed it to him and said, "These are names you said you liked and I added a few I like."_

"_Yeah…" Nathan nods as he reads the list. "These are all good. But which one is your favorite?"_

_Haley smiled and pointed to a name on the paper. "This one."_

_Nathan looked up at her with a smile and said, "You're really fond of that name, aren't you?"_

_Haley nodded and replied, "I really am."_

_They leaned in to each other and kissed._

Haley smiles and sniffles as she wipes away her tears with her free hand,

"What is it?" Brooke asks. "Did you think of a name?"

Haley nods with her smile and says, "Henry…Nathan Henry Scott."

"Brooke's pregnant?" Peyton says surprised and worried. "How do you—"

"Her doctor," Lucas begins to explain. "She called the house and left a message for Brooke yesterday. Apparently, Brooke went for a check up earlier this week and they took a pregnancy test."

"Wow," Karen says. "Were you two…"

"We've been talking about having another one, but she never said anything to me about the check up or the fact that she thought she might be pregnant again. But I guess that's because she's been pissed at me for not being around much lately."

Lucas puts his elbows on the table and holds his head, feeling guilty and scared for his wife still.

"Well maybe she doesn't really know." Peyton suggests. When I was pregnant with Ellie, I didn't even know until I went in for a check up. The thought never even crossed my mind until the doctor took a pregnancy test. Did the doctor say how far along she is?"

Lucas nods and says, "Seven weeks."

They all fell silent, still thinking and worrying even more for Brooke.

"The stakes are even higher now." Nathan speaks, breaking the silence. "Dan is messing with innocent lives, now adding another life on top of our wives and two of our children."

Nathan looks over at his stepfather and continues, "You said you have an idea on where to start looking for them?"

Rob nods as he leans forward and he says, "Yeah…I think to find Dan, we have to start where we were told he finished."

"What do you mean?" Lucas asks.

"The hospital," Nathan answers, remembering the last time. "The one in Georgia where they took James after the accident with Dan?"

Rob nods and explains his idea further, "I have a hunch that that doctor who treated James and Dan is connected to Dan's actions now. We need to find out what exactly happened and if that doctor is still there. This is the best place to start right now I think, so I'm going to head down there next week and begin investigating this."

"It's a good plan." Nathan says. "Hopefully it'll give us a good lead."

"I agree." Lucas says. "And I think I want to go with you, Rob."

Everyone looks at him, waiting for his explanation, ""I want to go with you because I need to. I have to help with this investigation. I need to save my wife and my child and my family from Dan. I need to do this for Brooke and for my girls. I can't just sit and back and wait."

Karen puts her hand on her son's hand and says, "We understand, honey."

"Yeah, man, "Nathan says. "I completely understand. And I want to help with the investigation to and I want to go with you to figure this out, but for now…I have to help from here because my kids need me, especially Chloe. I can't leave her right now, not while she's in such a horrible place. I need to know she's going to be okay. But I'll definitely do anything and everything I can here while you guys investigate down in Georgia."

"I understand that too, Nate." Lucas says to his brother, tapping his shoulder. "We both have to do what we need to do for our families.

Lucas looks back at Rob and says, "So what do you think? I know I'm not a cop, but I do have a lot of experience in dealing with Dan and I've learned a lot from my little brother here. So do you think that's enough to let me help?"

"For now, yes," Rob agrees. "I can definitely use all the help I can get."


	14. Chapter 12: It'll Be Okay I Hope

**a/n: i know, finally an update right? LOL. sorry it took so long...Senior year is busier than i thought it would be. but i finally got this chapter finished so i hope you enjoy it. don't forget to review. Thanks**

**Chapter Twelve: **_It's Gonna Be Okay…I Hope_

Days after kidnapping Brooke, Haley and Cooper, Dan was happy to finally be closing in on his hideout destination where he intends on holding them hostage for a very long while…who knows, maybe even forever. Yes…they could become his new family. He would steal this family like Nathan and Lucas stole a family from him. They would hate this, but what other choice would they have? It's a home with him, or well…no life at all. And in this place, there's no chance Nathan and Lucas would find them here.

"Home sweet home," Dan says, pushing open the door to an actual house. He steps aside to let Brooke, Cooper and Haley with the baby enter. Marcus follows inside, carrying a large box, conforming to Dan's demands.

"This isn't home." Brooke says, setting her purse on the floor by an ugly, old couch. "This is a dump."

"Well, it is nice than that van." Haley says, sitting down on the sofa with the baby.

"Thanks you." Dan says.

"I'm not defending you." Haley snaps, glaring at him. "I just want my kids away from you and there's more space in here than there is in that dirty old van."

Dan nods, unsurprised and unoffended by Haley's tone and harsh words.

"Well," he says, " you can all look around, get comfortable and make yourselves at home. But don't hurt yourselves trying to find a way to escape. All the doors are locked from the outside and the windows are sealed. Marcus will help you with anything you need and if you get hungry…. well, there is plenty of food in the fridge…I just stocked up."

"Where the hell are you going?" Haley asks, still glaring. "Not that we really care."

"Well I have a few more things to pick up. And you might consider behaving…it's all for you, to make your stay more comfortable."

Dan chuckles as he heads back out the door, locking all locks running down the door before leaving.

"Please eat your breakfast, Chloe." Nathan begs of his three year old, sitting at the kitchen table in a chair next to her in her booster seat.

James and Katie are sitting next to Chloe, watching as their father attempts to feed Chloe again and again.

"It's Coco-Puffs. You love Coco-Puffs." Nathan holds the spoon up to Chloe's mouth. "C'mon, honey…just a few bites."

Chloe doesn't open her mouth. Instead, she stares at Nathan with a pout.

Nathan sighs as he drops the spoon back into the bowl, making a clinking noise and he says, "Okay. I give up."

He stands up and pulls Chloe from her seat and kisses her cheek.

"You know daddy loves you, right?"

Nathan stares at her in his arms, hoping she might say just one word…that's all he needs to hear to know she'll be okay. But still she says nothing as she stares back at him with the same pout.

"Okay." He says again as he sets her down. "You can go play with Rocket now."

Chloe picks up her purple toddler cup from the table and walks slowly to the living room as Nathan watches.

"At least she'll drink her milk." He sighs before sitting back down.

"Daddy," Katie says, finishing a mouthful of cereal. "Why won't Chloe eat or talk no more?"

"Because she misses mom." James answers sadly.

"But I miss mommy too and I'm still eating and talking. Am I not supposed to?"

"No, honey." Nathan says quickly. "I don't want you to stop eating and talking too. But your sister is just going through something more than just missing mom. When she saw your mom and Cooper and aunt Brooke being taken, it really scared her and it made her feel alone and abandoned. She still does and that's why she doesn't want to be away from us. Seeing what she saw was really scary and it's still affecting her. She's still afraid."

"Will she be afraid forever?"

"She will be for awhile, but not forever. I'm going to take her to a doctor who can help her. She'll be okay…don't worry."

"What about mommy?" Katie asks more sadly. "Will she be okay too?"

Nathan swallows. _There's that question again…now how am I supposed to answer it? She's only six years old._

"Yeah, sweetie." He says. "She'll be okay."

Katie smiles a small smile and then asks, "And Cooper and baby Henry? They'll be okay too, right?"

Nathan nods and Katie smiles wider. She stands up from the table and says, "Then I'll believe Dad. I'll believe and they'll be home soon."

Nathan smiles again at his oldest baby girl. _God, she is all Haley. She has so much faith. Thank God for her and all my kids…they keep me strong at times like these._

"That's good, Katie." He says, reaching his arms out for hug.

Katie walks closer and hugs him tight.

"I love you, Daddy." She says.

"I love you too, Katie bug."

Katie pecks his cheek and runs to the living room.

Nathan looks over at James and notices his sullen expression as he stares into his bowl, playing with his spoon.

"Hey," he says and James looks up. Nathan squints his eyes in concern and continues, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," James replies. "I was just thinking about something."

"What?"

James stares at his father. Should he tell him? _No…I can't. It's not true; it's not what happened, so why say anything? It is sort of odd though…how mom…no, stop it. He would have told me. He swore he would tell me. And he's never lied before. So there really is no reason to say anything. I should just stop thinking about it all together._

James shakes his head again as he carries his and Katie's bowls to the sink and he says, "Nothing. I'm gonna go get dressed."

And Nathan watches his son walk-away, sensing there was really something bothering him…something more than just missing his mom and brother. But what?

"Where's Anna, Aunt Peyton?" Jessilyn asks after she and Kelsey greet Peyton at the front door.

"She's at home." Peyton replies as they enter the living room.

"Why didn't she come with you?"

"Because she had to clean her room and…well, I wanted to spend some time alone with you guys."

"Auntie Peyton!" Two little voices shout.

Peyton smiles as Ashlyn and Megyn come running into the living room. She bends down to hug them as Lucas and Karen step off the front stairs and enter the living room.

"Daddy, you didn't tell us auntie Peyton was coming over too." Megyn says.

"Yeah," Ashlyn agrees. "Are we having a party?"

"No, honey." Lucas replies. He sighs and says, "We're having a family meeting. Daddy has to talk to you about something."

Peyton, Karen and Kelsey help gather the girls around the couch before taking their seats.

"Do you guys remember when I told you mommy and aunt Haley went on vacation?" Lucas starts with Megyn sitting on his lap and Jessilyn and Ashlyn sitting on either side of him.

"Yes." Jessilyn says.

Lucas sighs and continues, "Well, I told you that because I wasn't ready to explain to you what really happened to them and I didn't want to scare you either."

"What happened to them, Daddy?" Megyn asks.

Lucas looks over at his mom, who's sitting in the chair next to the couch. She touches his hand and he feels the strength to continue.

"Somebody took mommy and aunt Haley and Cooper when they went out that day."

"You mean like when someone took Jamie a long time ago, Dad?" Jessilyn asks, while her sisters sit there confused.

"Yeah, honey.

"Where is mommy?" Ashlyn asks.

"Someone took her, Ashy." Megyn answers. "Don't you listen?"

"Be nice, Megyn." Lucas says sternly.

"I want mommy." Ashlyn says, covering her eyes as she begins to cry.

"Shh…" Jessilyn says, hugging her sister. "Mommy will be okay."

She looks at her father and he stares back at her as she says, "Daddy's gonna find her…aren't you?"

That look in her eyes, that look of fear and hope all at the same time, the same look Brooke gets when she's afraid, brings tears to Lucas' s eyes and he says, "That's right…daddy's going to find her."

"I'm going to see if there's a decent bathroom and bedrooms to this crap hole." Cooper says to his mom as he stands up from lying on the floor.

Haley watches him as he leaves the room. She hears Marcus moving around in the kitchen. She glances down at her infant son, swaddled in blankets, asleep atop more blankets on the floor below her. She hears a sniffle next to her on the couch and looks over at Brooke, sitting Indian style, with her hands pulled into her gray hooded sweatshirt…Lucas's gray hooded sweatshirt.

"Hey," Haley says worriedly, touching Brooke's shoulder. "Are you okay?"

Brooke shakes her head and sniffling again she says, "I miss my girls and I miss Lucas…I really, really miss them."

"I know." Haley says, rubbing her friend's back.

"I need Lucas…I really, really need him right now."

"I know. And he knows. He's going to find us."

"I really need him." Brooke says again quietly, as if in a trance. She bows her head and says, "We really need him."

Haley stares at her friend, ready to cry with her.

"Haley…" Brooke says, crying again. "There's something else…"

Haley waits for Brooke to continue and Brooke looks up at her friend and finishes, "I'm pregnant."


	15. Chapter 13: Anything & Everything

**Chapter Thirteen: **_Anything & Everything for Family_

"When are you going to be home, Dad?" Jessilyn asks through the phone as she crawls up on a stool at the island counter in the kitchen.

"In a few days, honey," Lucas replies on his cell phone while sitting in the passenger seat of Rob's car. "Rob and I have a few things we need to do to help us find mommy, and then we'll be home as soon as we can."

"Promise?"

"I promise, Jess. You just be my big girl and take care of your sisters while I'm gone. And make sure they behave for grandma, grandpa and Kelsey okay?"

"Okay, I'll be in charge of them. I'll help nana. I love you, Dad."

"I love you too, princess." Lucas waits to hear the dial tone before clicking off his cell phone.

"Missing you already, huh?" Rob says while still in control of the car.

"Yeah," Lucas says with a sigh. "And I miss them too. But, the sooner we get to Georgia and figure all this out, the sooner I can get back home and be with them."

"Yes," Rob says. "Hopefully, this trip will answer a lot of questions for us and speed up this investigation."

"I hope so too," Lucas says. "The sooner we find them, the better."

"You said she hasn't been eating or talking since what happened?" Doctor Caller asks as she sits across from Nathan at a table in her office.

"No, not really." Nathan replies as Chloe sits on his lap, leaning into his chest with her whole body. "I mean, I've gotten her to start eating some fruit and like chicken noodle soup, but she needs more than that."

Doctor Caller nods her head as she records on paper everything Nathan tells her.

"Well," she says when she looks back up at him. "Not talking and a loss of appetite are typical responses of Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome, especially for a child as young as Chloe."

"Is there anything you can do for her?"

"I'm not sure," Doctor Caller replies honestly. "That really depends on Chloe. I can do my best to work with her and talk to her and hopefully get to the basis of what is keeping her from talking and eating like she used to. And once we get there, we can keep on working with her and hopefully get her to open up and finally deal with what happened."

"Well, isn't that what she's doing now…dealing?"

"Well, actually, right now, Chloe is in sort of a state of shock, which is what Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome is. Her problem is she doesn't know how to deal with whatever it was that put her in the state she's in, so we will work with her and engage her in activities that will help her work through what is making her feel so scared, alone and abandoned, as she is probably feeling."

Nathan nods and looks down at Chloe again. Then, he looks back up and doctor Caller and says, "Okay…then I want you to do whatever you can to help her."

"Can you believe he's a week old already?" Brooke asks Haley as they stare down at the baby boy asleep in the playpen, which Dan had brought back to the house when he returned. He also brought inside the boxes from the truck. Inside the boxes, were food and clothing, which Dan claimed he bought from places like Good Will, but of course no one believed him. Still…at least he wasn't planning on starving them, although it made Brooke, Haley and Cooper wonder why exactly he's keeping them hostage.

Haley shakes her head and replies, "Nope. And it's one whole week of his life Nathan will never have with him."

She turns around and walks back to sit on the bigger bed in the room. In the small house where Dan is keeping them, there are only three bedrooms, two small ones up stairs and one big one downstairs. The downstairs bedroom is the room Haley, Brooke, Cooper and the baby are sharing, although Cooper has been sleeping on the couch in the living room so he can still protect his family…the way his father would.

Brooke follows Haley to the bed and sits down next to her and says, "You're right, but there are some things we can do to make up for that. I have a disposable camera in my purse that I bought…well, a few days before we ended up in this situation. I was going to use it when the girls start preschool in a couple weeks, but…it looks like I'm going to miss that, so I want you to have it. You can take pictures of Henry and maybe put together a little baby book you can give to Nathan when we see him again."

Haley smiles and says, "Thank you, Brooke. I appreciate that."

Brooke smiles back with a glisten in her eyes and says, "Anything and everything for family."

She wipes away tears before more can form.

"So," Haley says, changing the subject. "How are you feeling today?"

"Well, with the exception of nausea here and there and missing my husband and children terribly…I feel fine."

She stands up and puts a hand on her stomach. She turns around, facing Haley again and she says, "You know, this might be really horrible to say, but I don't really feel like I'm pregnant. I know I'm only eight weeks and some people don't even feel it then, but I did…with Jessilyn and the twins. I remember feeling pregnant at eight weeks with them, but I don't with this one and I think it's because—"

"You can't celebrate it with Lucas?" Haley finishes.

Brooke nods and in almost a whisper she says, "He really wants this baby."

"What about you?" Haley asks after a minute. "Do you want this baby?"

Brooke is quiet a moment, thinking…not about whether or not she wanted the baby, but about how to get her words out without breaking down into tears again.

She nods and she whispers again, "Yeah, I do, but not without Lucas. I've never done the whole pregnancy thing without him right here next to me before. And I don't know how to—no, I don't want to do it without him, especially in this situation. I need him."

Haley stands up and hugs her sister-in-law, slash best friend.

"Well, you've got me for now," she says. "And I'll do whatever I can to help you through this as long as you promise to help me through too."

They pull out of the hug and Brooke says, "I promise. We'll stick together."

"That's right," Haley says. She smiles and says, "Anything and everything for family."

**A/n: so, so sorry it took so long to get you this update….i was busy with school and then I got writers block with this and got busy with other stories, but finally I got some ideas for this one. So I hope you enjoy it. Don't forget to review.**


	16. Chapter 14: Finding Out the Truth

**a/n: OMG!! i am so sorry it has taken me so long to update. so busy with school and working on this and other stuff. i thought i had update a lot further than i had, but i guess not. so i will let you read it now. please review when you are done/ thanks for your patience**

**Chapter Fourteen: **_Finding Out the Truth_

Lucas and Rob arrived in Atlanta, Georgia after about only ten hours of driving, allowing one stop for rest. Now, about forty-five minutes after arriving in Georgia, they have arrived at St. George Memorial Hospital.

"Thanks for meeting us, Mike, "Rob says, shaking the hand of his Atlanta detective friend in the hospital parking lot.

"Certainly," Mike replies. "I'm as interested as you to find out what happened here back then, and I'll do whatever I can to help you."

"Well, we certainly can use all the help we can get," Rob says. He looks at Lucas and says, "Mike, this is Nathan's brother, Lucas Scott. His wife, Brooke was taken too."

"I'm sorry about that," Mike says, holding out his hand.

"Thanks, me too." Lucas says, shaking his hand. "Hopefully, we'll find them soon though."

"Well, that's what we're going to do." Rob says. "So let's head inside and see what we can find out."

"So what's he got on you?" Cooper asks Marcus, interrupting the almost silence of the living room where he, the doctor, Haley and Brooke are sitting around a small television…another item from Dan to "keep them entertained" as he put it.

He brought the television back after his second trip away from the house. Where he goes when he leaves, not one of them knows. But when he does go away, he disappears for days, and they have peace when he's not there; although, of them desperately wish to be home with their families.

When Cooper speaks to Marcus, Haley and Brooke, who are sitting next to each other on the couch, Haley with baby Henry in her arms as she breastfeeds him, both look over at them.

"What do you mean?" Marcus replies, though already knowing exactly what Cooper is getting at.

"Come on," Cooper says. "I know you're not a bad guy like Dan is, otherwise you wouldn't have helped my mom. So why are you helping him keep us here?"

"That's an interesting question," Haley says. "I'd love to hear the answer."

"I'm not helping him," Marcus replies, looking at Cooper. "I'm a prisoner too."

"But you helped him get us here," Brooke points out. "Why?"

"What's he got on you?" Cooper asks again. "Where're you from? And how does he even know you?"

Marcus doesn't answer…he's too afraid. They finally trust him enough to be around him. He doesn't want them to hate him again, but they will if they know the truth, if they know about everything that happened. But he was a different person back then and he never wants to be that guy again. No, now he just wants to figure out a way to help them out of this mess and save them from that crazy bastard, Maybe that would make up for what he did back then, for helping Dan escape. They have families too and deserve to be with them.

"You won't like the answers," Marcus finally replies. "And you'll hate me."

"Try us," Haley says.

Marcus shakes his head and still avoiding answering their questions, says, "It's a really long story."

"Um," Brooke says, looking all around the room, "does it look like we're going anywhere? We've got plenty of time to kill. And we really would like to know the answers."

Marcus stares at them all. _Well, I'll have to tell them eventually, so why not now? Sooner the better right…. no, who am I kidding? Sooner or later…either way doesn't matter…. they're going to hate me. But maybe telling them now, while Dan is away, is better and easier…maybe I'll have a better chance of smoothing things over with them afterwards._

"What do you mean he isn't here anymore?" Lucas says angrily to the Chief of Staff of the hospital, Rob and Mike standing with him. "Where is he? Where did he go?"

"That's the thing, we don't know." Chief of Staff, Doctor Lure replies, sitting down behind his desk. "He took his vacation time almost three weeks ago, meaning he was supposed to return last week. We haven't received any contact with Doctor Dager since he left."

"Perfect." Lucas sighs, forcing himself away from the desk. He covers his head in frustration.

"Doctor Lure," Rob begins, sitting in a chair in front of the desk. "We're investigating the kidnapping of my daughter-in-law, my grandson and—"

"My wife," Lucas finishes, walking back to them.

Rob continues, "Now, we know who took them, but the last person to ever see him was Marcus Dager five years ago. His name is Dan Scott and he was brought to this hospital from an accident along with my grandson James Scott, whom he kidnapped back then. Doctor Dager treated both of them and when he spoke to us about Dan, he told us Dan had died from severe head trauma and internal bleeding."

"Really?" Doctor Lure responds in a tone of surprise. "And you're sure it was doctor Dager who treated him?"

"Positive," Mike answers. "I wrote everything down on paper that he told us. It was most definitely Marcus Dager, M.D."

"And you're certain this…Dan Scott is alive?"

"Yes, damn it!" Lucas shouts. "He is alive and he has kidnapped my wife, my sister and my nephew and we need to find him!"

"I understand, but I don't know what you want from me," doctor Lure defends. "This is the first I'm hearing about any of this, and frankly, I'm devastated by it all and I'm wondering how it's even possible this could've happened, how it could've gotten past me."

"Well, you're not the first to be stuck in a situation involving Dan," Lucas says more calmly.

"Doctor Lure," Rob says and the doctor looks back at him. "It is very, very important that we find Doctor Dager. If we find him, we may have a better chance at finding Dan and at saving this hospital from a lawsuit of negligence. If we find him, we can strap the lawsuit on him. So any information you have on Dager, anything about him or his family that we can use to get in touch with him, would be extremely vital to this investigation and the future security and existence of this hospital and your job. Is there anything you can give us?"

Doctor Lure nods and says, "Yes…there is something."

"I'm sorry, okay." Marcus says as Cooper and Haley walk out of the living room angrily after hearing his story.

"Yeah, you should be." Haley said when she passed him, carrying her baby in her arms.

Marcus looks over at Brooke, walking toward him with tears in her eyes and a scowl on her face. She stops in front of him and after staring at him for a moment, lifts her hand and slaps him, leaving a welt upon his face.

"Damn you," she says, "you stupid, selfish son of a bitch. It's your fault we're here away from our families. You could've put him away and kept him from hurting anyone else, but you let him go. You convinced everyone he was dead, and now he's back and more psychotic than ever before. I am pregnant and unable to share it with my husband and my children because of what you did. Haley and Cooper and that baby are apart from their family because of you. Nathan will never get those first precious moments with his son because Dan is imprisoning us here against our will. And it's all your fault. I hope you both burn in hell."

Brooke turns and walks away, back to the bedroom with Haley, Cooper and Henry. Marcus sits back down on the couch and bows his head.

_They have every right to be angry, _he thinks. _Brooke had every right to say what she said. I was stupid and I was selfish. If it weren't for me, none of us would be here right now. But…if I hadn't helped Dan, if I hadn't accepted his offer, I might be dead right now…_

_The blade was cold and sharp against his neck. He'd never been as scared in his life as he was in that moment when Joe was moments away from decapitating him. _

"_You owe Willy a lot of money, Marcus," Joe said as he held Marcus tightly against him and the blade against his neck._

"_I know," Marcus said nervously, swallowing after almost every breath. "And I'm going to get it, all of it. I promise."_

"_You really should stop gambling with money you don't have, Marcus, " Joe said, speaking in an intimidating tone. "You might just get yourself one of these days."_

"_I-I'll g-get t-the m-money," Marcus stuttered again. "I-I s-swear."_

"_Now, how should I believe you? You swore you'd have it months ago, Marcus. You keep breaking your promise, and you know Willy doesn't like it when people break their promises, especially when those people owe him money. Willy doesn't like it when he doesn't get his money, and if Willy don't get paid, I don't get paid. I don't like not being paid, Marcus."_

_Joe tightened his grip on Marcus and he flinched when the knife was pressed harder._

"_I know, know," Marcus said choking. "I've just had a little trouble getting a hold on all of the money. I don't have enough right now, but I'll get it. I think I know where to get it now. I swear…I'll follow through this time. I just…I need a few more days."_

"_You better not be playing games with me, Marcus."_

"_I'm not, I swear. Please…just a few more days…it's all I need."_

_Joe slowly moved the flat side of the knife across and finally off of Marcus' neck and he said, "This is your last chance, Dager…you've got three days."_

Marcus grows sweaty just remembering that night. He had been in so much trouble with that crowd. He'd always been in trouble with that crowd in his gambling days, but that last time was the worst. He came this close to losing his life. Had he not been working the following day in the hospital, had Dan not been brought in that day, Marcus would not be alive today.

_He had just finished caring for a young boy who had come in from an accident. Then, he had to check on his first patient from the accident…a John Doe. He entered the room and saw right away that he was still unconscious and had been put in restraints. He walked slowly to the bed and picked up the chart._

"_Okay, John Doe," he said, looking through the chart. "Let's see how you are doing."_

_He looked up from the chart and examined the cuts and bruises on the patient's face. Then, he checked the reflexes by shining a tiny light in his eyes. Nothing._

_Then, while he was recording everything on the chart, the patient opened his eyes and spoke._

"_Who are you?"_

_Marcus looked at him and replied, "I'm doctor Dager. You're in St. George Memorial Hospital. Do you know what happened to you?"_

"_An accident…the car rolled." His patient said. _

"_Good…can you remember your name as well?"_

"_Dan…Scott." The patient answered and Marcus wrote it on the papers. Dan remained quiet while he did this. But when he noticed the police patrolling the hallways, he grabbed Marcus' hand on the bed rail and said, "I need your help."_

"_What? Are you in pain?"_

"_No," Dan said. "I need to get out of here. I need to get away…far, far away. I need to be dead."_

_Marcus only stared at him, confused._

"_Name your price." Dan said and it perked Marcus' interests. "I'll pay whatever you want if you make me dead and make it known that I am."_

_Marcus continued staring at Dan, disbelieving. His offer couldn't have come at a more desperate needed time._


	17. Chapter 15: Left with Nothing

**Chapter Fifteen: **_Left With Nothing_

Lucas rides silently in the passenger seat of the car as Rob drives back to Tree Hill. He cannot stop thinking about what a wasted trip this had been. They hadn't gotten any closer to finding Dan by coming down here. Sure…they had gotten information on that doctor and how he had come to be involved in all this, but they still had no idea as to where Dan had taken Brooke, Haley and Cooper. Dan is being much smarter in hiding this time than he had been when he kidnapped James.

Frankly, without any leads, Lucas isn't sure how they will ever be able to find them. That doctor in charge of the entire hospital couldn't give them anything but Dager's address and his wife's name. But even his wife couldn't give them anything useful…

"_I have a feeling this is going to lead us nowhere," Lucas said as he, Rob, and Detective Campbell walked up to the door of a large house._

"_Well, you never know," Detective Campbell says, "sometimes we get a lot more useful information than we expect, and sometimes we get nothing useful at all."_

"_Well, for the sake of our family," Rob said as his friend rang the doorbell, "let's hope we do get something useful."_

_All three of them looked at the door as a young, pregnant blond opened the door, holding a blond headed toddler boy on her hip._

"_May I help you?" The woman asked as she and her son stared at the three of them._

_Detective Campbell stepped in front of Lucas and Rob, held up his badge and said, "Yes, m'am. I'm detective Mike Campbell and this is Lucas Scott and Chief Robert Stevens from Tree Hill Police. We're investigating a kidnapping and we'd like to ask you a few questions."_

"_Me?" The woman replied, shifting her son higher on her hip. "I'm sorry, but I don't know—I haven't been—"_

"_No," Detective Campbell interrupted, "maybe not you, but we do believe your husband, Doctor Marcus Dager is involved."_

_Dager's wife got very nervous then and invited us inside. She left her son in the playpen in the living room and then sat in a chair across from them on the couch._

"_Mrs. Dager," Detective Campbell began, "how long have you and your husband been married?"_

"_About three years," Mrs. Dager replied._

"_And how long had you known each other before you were married?"_

"_Oh, we knew each other for many years. We, um…we met about ten years ago while he was in med school. I had just started as a nurse at the same hospital he was working at. We hit it off as friends right away. We started dating about three years after we met. I fell right in love with him and him with me. But as great as I thought he was then, I always knew he was hiding something…something that seemed to control him."_

"_Did you ever find out what it was?" Lucas asked._

"_Yeah," Mrs. Dager replied, nodding her head. "Gambling. He had a huge problem with gambling back then, which explained why his money was always disappearing. It took me quite awhile to figure it out, but I did. And I tried to talk to him about it several times, but he would always get angry with me._

"_I would tell him over and over again that he had a serious problem and that he needed to take control of it before it hurt him or hurt us, but…he just wouldn't stop. He just got more and more in debt and I just couldn't take it anymore. I finally told him that I would leave him if he didn't quite. I told him it was either the gambling or me, that if he wanted a real future with me, he would have to stop gambling first…for good."_

"_That must've been why he helped Dan," Rob inferred as Lucas leaned back on the couch. "Dan probably offered him the money to cover up for him and Marcus must've taken it to clean up all his debts."_

_Mrs. Sager nodded again and continued, "He came back to me about a year after I left him, pleading with me to please forgive him and take him back. He said he'd paid off all his debts and hadn't gambled in months. Of course, I didn't believe him right then because I didn't know that I could trust him. Then, he told me what really convinced him to stop…nearly being killed because of his many debts. I knew then that he was sincere and I forgave him because I still loved him."_

"_But he didn't tell you about what he did to get the money to pay off his debts?" Detective Campbell asked. _

"_No…not until about a month ago, right before he disappeared."_

"_Disappeared?" Rob repeated curiously. _

_Mrs. Dager put her hands on her pregnant stomach and she explained, "He came home from work, really freaked out and he said he needed to tell me something. So we sat down and he told me that when he paid off all his debts back then, he had gotten the money from a patient who had offered it to him in exchange for a lie…to help him fake his death. Marcus told me how he struggled with that offer, how he knew how wrong it was, but that he did it because he knew he would have no other way to pay back all the money he owed in time and that if he didn't…he would be killed._

"_I couldn't believe that he had kept that from me. And then I wondered why he had decided to tell me then. He told me it was because the patient he had taken the money from had come back, after five years for more help. He said he couldn't tell what Dan needed his help with or how long he would have to be gone. And he said hi didn't know when he would be able to contact me. "_

_Mrs. Dager was in tears, but she still went on, "I couldn't believe it, any of it, and I was so angry. I told him not to go, not to let this man control him, but he said he had no other choice and that if he didn't go, Dan would hurt us."_

Everything came together with her story. Doctor Dager had helped Dan escape five years ago to cover a debt, and now he was another hostage of Dan's. This game Dan is playing only getting worse.

_So Lucas and that damn cop husband of Deb's are following my trail…I guess they're smarter than they look._

Dan smirks as he drives his van on the open road, heading back to his hideout. He's spent days driving back to Tree Hill and then to Georgia to see how well his plan for revenge is working. And from what he's observed so far…it's working perfectly.

_Nathan is completely lost without Haley…at least that's how he's looked. I haven't seen even an inkling of a smile both times I've been back since I took Brooke and Haley away. All he can do is mope around…and Lucas too._

_Lucas really seems to be hurting after his little visit to the hospital in Georgia. Good…it's exactly what I've wanted, for him to go looking with all hopes of finding me and then be crushed when he comes out with nothing. And nothing is exactly what they got from that little trip of theirs._

_They still know nothing about where I am or where I'm keeping their loved ones. And they'll never know…unless I tell them. But I can't tell them unless they find me, which they never will. And even if by some odd strike of luck they do find me, I can still keep them hurting. This torturous game is so entertaining. I'm finally getting mine just from watching them suffer._

"You might as well give it up boys," Dan says to himself. "You're not going to win…not this time. They're my family now."

"So you pretty much found out nothing?" Nathan concludes after hearing what Lucas and Rob had to tell him about their trip.

"Nothing that will help us find Dan," Lucas replies, leaning back on the couch. "So we're pretty much back to square one."

"Of course." Nathan says through a sigh.

"So what do we do now?" Deb asks her husband.

"I don't know," Rob answers. "To be honest, I don't think there's much we can do. I mean, we have nothing to go on. The best we can do is notify the FBI and put out a description of Dan. The FBI is probably our best and only shot now."

"Well, we have to do anything and everything we can to find them," Nathan says. "We have to think outside of the box, just like Dan would. We can't give up…we can't let Dan get away with taking them."

"What do you mean Dan taking them?" Another voice enters the conversation.

Nathan turns around and faces whom everyone else is staring at…his son.

"You told me you didn't know who took them," James says angrily, glaring at his father. "You said you would tell me if you knew."

"James, I—"

"How could you not tell me, Dad? How could you not tell me whom it was that took my mom and brother? Why didn't you tell me it was him?"

"I didn't want you to…I was trying to protect you."

"By lying to me? That's not protecting me, Dad, that's hurting me. Mom would have told me…she wouldn't have lied to me like you did."

"James!" Nathan calls out to his son as he turns away out of the room. He quickly follows him and stops at the stairs as James continues climbing them.

"Jamie!"

He sighs and starts up the stairs, hoping James will let him in to explain when he reaches his room.

**a/n: sorry to leave you with another cliffy like that. hopefully it won't take me so long to update again. thanks for your patience, now please go review!!!! thanks!!**


	18. Chapter 16: Small Thread of Hope

**a/n: oh my gosh, it's been forever, hasn't it? sorry...had some trouble writing and then actually writing and then getting this site to let me update. but anyway, here it is, hope you like. and don't forget to review**

XOXOXOXXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

**Chapter Sixteen: **_Small Threa__d of Hope_

It's the beginning of September now…a month since his wife, son, sister-in-law, and now newborn infant son were taken. Everyday without them is harder and harder to keep living. It's gotten especially harder in the last few weeks…ever since that blow out with James…

"_James," Nathan said outside his son's bedroom door that night. "Jamie, please open the door. I want to talk to you about this."_

"_I don't want to talk to you right now!" James shouted from inside._

_Nathan sighed and said, "At least let me explain."_

_Only a few seconds after those words, James opened the door and glared at his father._

"_No explanation is gonna make this right, Dad," he said angrily. "You lied to me."_

_He turned away and went back to his bed and plopped down on it. Nathan stepped inside and closed the door so they wouldn't wake the girls._

"_Look," he said as he walked closer to the bed. "I know you're mad at me, but you need to understand that I thought I was protecting you by not telling you. It was wrong, I know, but you're not even eleven yet, Jamie. You're still a kid and I didn't want you to have that on your mind constantly. I didn't want you to be hurting more than you already were. I didn't want Dan to cause you any more pain. I'm sorry."_

_James sat up on the bed and stared at his father…crying._

"_But you just made it worse, Dad," he said. "Because I was already hurting because of Dan."_

"_I know, that's why I—"_

"_No, I'm not talking about the pain he caused me when he kidnapped me, or at least not only that. When I was with him, he would tell me that you and mom didn't want or love me anymore, and that haunted me for a long time. I had nightmares for years. But I grew up fast because of that, and that's why I'm not just a normal ten year old, Dad. I understand a lot more then people think I do and I bear more pain than most kids my age. But you still don't think I can handle it. But you're wrong. Being around you and mom and family after what Dan did to me helped lessen those nightmares I had until they finally stopped."_

_Nathan stared at his son as he listened carefully._

"_I didn't have nightmares for a really long time…right up until that last one when you and mom had to wake me up because I was yelling."_

"_And you said you didn't remember the dream." Nathan said as he sat down in the desk chair across from the bed._

_James nodded and said, "I didn't want to remember it. And I didn't want you and mom to know what it was about because it felt so real. It really freaked me out and I was scared to talk about it because I thought talking about it would make it come true. But it didn't work…the nightmare still became real. Dan came back and he kidnapped mom."_

"_That was your dream, that Dan would kidnap her?"_

_James nodded again._

"_Part of it." He paused and looked up at Nathan again. "I'm praying we find them before the worst part of it can happen."_

"_We are going to find them, James, I promise. I'm not going to let Dan hurt your mom or the others."_

_James stared back at him with all the hurt and betrayal in his eyes as he said, "But you already let him take them."_

James blames Nathan for what happened. It hurts him, hearing his son blame him for something that was out of his control. _But then again, maybe it could've been in my control. Maybe if I had just been with Haley that day or gotten to the bank sooner…maybe I could've stopped Dan, maybe…_

"Daddy?" Katie's voice rings out to Nathan as he stares at a family photograph taken a year ago. He looks down at Katie, standing in the archway between the kitchen and living room and dressed in a denim squirt and pink tank top with wink sandals on her feet.

"What's up, Kate?" Nathan responds, walking closer to her.

"We're gonna be late for school and it's the first day," Katie says, slipping on her denim jacket and then her purple butterfly backpack. "You don't want me to be late on my first day of first grade, do you?"

Nathan smiles. _Again…just like Haley._

"No," he replies. "I don't want that, I'll just wake Chloe up. She fell back to sleep after breakfast. Where's your brother?"

"He's in the car already," Katie answers, taking her purple BRATZ lunch box off the table.

Nathan nods and a turn to enter the living room again to get Chloe, but Katie speaks again.

"Daddy?"

Nathan looks back at her and she asks, "How long is Jamie gonna be mad and not talk to you?"

_Poor kid,_ Nathan thinks as he stares at his little girl, his min Haley. _She's stuck in the middle again and aware of everything going on around her._

"I don't know, Katie," He answers honestly. "Hopefully not forever."

Katie walks over and hugs him. Then, she looks up at him and says, "Well, you don't have to worry about me Dad. I'll never be angry with you. I know it wasn't your fault. And I know we're gonna find mommy…I can feel it."

And she turns and walks toward the door to the garage, leaving Nathan with a smile and holding tighter on that small thread of hope.

"Come on girls," Lucas says as he enters the twins' bedroom, where his sister is helping them get ready for school. "You're going to be late for your first day."

"Luke," Kelsey says as she stands up from helping Megyn put her sandals on. "It's only preschool. I don't think they're going to miss much if they're late."

"Maybe not," Lucas says with a smile (something he doesn't do much anymore) "But Jess starts third grade today too and you start junior year in like half an hour."

"That's okay," Kelsey says, sticking her hands in her jean pockets. "I don't mind being late."

"Well, I do. Mom and dad will kick both our asses if you're late."

"Awe," Ashlyn says, walking up to Lucas, hand in hand with Megyn. Both are dressed in sundresses, Megyn's purple and Ashlyn's pink. "You said a bad word, Daddy."

Lucas looks down at his daughters and says, "No, I didn't…I said 'apples'."

Kelsey smiles at her brother as Megyn says, "No, you didn't. We heard you, Dad. You said the bad word."

"Yeah, "Ashlyn adds. "Do you think we're deaf or somethin'? That was potty mouth."

"I'm sorry, "Lucas says. "It slipped out. Are you two ready?"

"Yes." The girls reply in unison.

"Where's Jess?" Lucas asks his sister.

"I think she's still in her room. You want me to get her?"

"No, I will. Can you just—"

"Yep, I got it." Kelsey looks down at her nieces and says, "Come on, ladies…let's go get your lunches and meet daddy and Jess in the car."

Both girls take Kelsey's hands and walk with her downstairs as Lucas makes his way to the next bedroom, Jessilyn's.

"Knock, knock," he says, tapping his knuckles on her open door before he enters. When he does enter, he enters a total little girl's room. Nearly everything in the room is pink, red or white, with the exception of the light, polished, wooden bed frame, dresser and desk, all matching. The walls are pink with white boarders and the closet doors are white as well. Posters of different bands are taped on different walls.

"You're going to be late for school," Lucas says as he walks over to Jessilyn, sitting on her pink and red striped bedspread.

"I don't care," Jessilyn replies sadly with her head lowered as she holds a stuffed monkey in her lap, petting it. "I don't really want to go anyway."

"Well you have to go, honey. Isn't Anna in your class this year?"

"I still don't want to go."

Lucas sits down next to his daughter and says, "Come on Jess…you were so excited for school to start earlier this summer so you and Anna could finally be in the same class. What changed?"

Jessilyn looks up at him with tears in her eyes and she whispers, "Mommy's not here."

Brooke stares at the photo of her family, which she keeps now with her all the time. She stares at it for hours now, everyday, and wishes she could wake up from this nightmare she's living in. She wants so badly to be home with them, all of them, especially today.

Her girls start school today, her twin daughters' very first day ever, and she wants to be there, with Lucas, helping them get ready. She wants to be there with him, crying over how grown up their little princess is as she heads inside for her first day of third grade. She wants to be there with Lucas, holding their baby girls as they cry because they're too afraid to go to preschool alone without mommy. But she can't tell them it'll be okay, that they'll be okay or that she loves them…she can't be there at all.

"You've got to stop thinking about them so much," Haley says across the bedroom, interrupting the silence and Brooke's thoughts.

Brooke looks up at her as Haley walks over.

"It only makes it worse. " Haley finishes as she sits down next to Brooke. "The more you think about them, the more it hurts, the more you cry, and the longer the days are stuck in this hell."

Brooke tucks the picture back under her pillow and sits up to talk to Haley.

"I can't not think about them, Haley." She says, laying her hands over her slightly extending stomach. "They're my family…the only real family I have and the family I've dreamt of having my entire life without a family."

"It's going to be okay, Brooke."

Haley puts an arm on her sister-in-law's shoulder. Brooke looks back at her with the same swollen, wet, red eyes she's had for weeks.

"How can you say that, Haley? How do you believe that? How can you believe that when we are stuck her with two maniacs in the middle of nowhere?"

Haley doesn't answer right away because she is concentrating on pushing back her own tears. But it doesn't work…they still roll off her cheeks as she answers, "Hope…a small thread of hope. It's all I have left to believe in."

He won't leave them alone…either of them, not Dan or Dager…no way. It's his job to protect his mom, brother and aunt, and that means watching out for the bad guys' every move.

"You're awfully quiet, Cooper." Dan says, sitting on the couch. Cooper is sitting across the room on a chair with a notepad and pencil. He spends his days now writing lyrics for songs and mostly drawing, like he used to as a kid. Dager is sitting on the other end of the couch, writing in a notebook…something he's been doing a lot lately.

"Have you finally nothing to say?" Dan finishes, turning the page of his newspaper.

"Not to you," Cooper retorts. He looks up at Dan, making eye contact with him and he says, "I'm supposed to curb my tongue, right? If I don't have anything nice to say, I shouldn't say anything at all, right?"

Dan smirks and nods his head.

"Right. Sounds like you've finally realized who's in charge here."

"Whatever."

Cooper goes back to his drawing.

"Your mother and aunt haven't left their room since breakfast," Dan says after a few minutes. "In fact, they don't leave that room at all except for meals and the use of the bathroom. Why is that?"

Cooper looks up again and so does Marcus. They exchange glances before Cooper looks back at Dan and says, "They just want to be far away from you and that room is the furthest away they can get."

Dan nods and says, "Well, they'll learn to stand to be around me in time. They can't live in their forever."

"Don't hold your breath," Cooper says quietly as Dan stands up.

"What was that?" Dan asks as he stands up. Cooper glares at him as Dan approaches him. He leans down and whispers in Cooper's ear, "You're starting with that attitude again, Cooper. Need I remind you of our last conversation about it?"

Cooper swallows. He remembers. It's what's kept him from saying much worse things to Dan.

"No," he answers sternly. "It won't happen again."

"Good," Dan says, as he stands straight up. "Now…I'm going out for awhile, but I'll be back sooner than before. I just need to replenish our supplies. You all behave yourselves while I'm gone. And someone please liven up this place too…. it's much too quiet."

Marcus and Cooper watch as Dan leaves and listens as he locks every lock behind the door. Cooper puts aside his drawing, grabs the remote and turns on the television, knowing nothing else to do to occupy his time. After a few minutes, Marcus stands up from the couch with his notebook in hand.

"Where are you going?" Cooper asks him when he notices him walking away.

Marcus turns around nervously and replies, "Just…to the bathroom. And then I think I'll go down for a nap. I'm quite tired."

He pretends to yawn before walking away, down the hallway. Cooper stares at the hallway for minutes after he departed. _I don't think he went to the bathroom…I didn't hear that creak of the stairs, unless he used the bathroom down here. Even still…I think I should see what he is really up to._

He stands up and begins down the dark hallway until he reaches the door at the very end. It is opened a crack and he can see light shining through from the basement behind it. He slowly pulls the door open and starts down the stairs, being careful not to let them creak and make Dager aware of his presence. Finally, he reaches the floor of the basement, but there is no immediate sight of Dager.

He walks all around the basement and still does not see him, though he is positive this is where he came. And then, there comes a noise over by the stairs. Cooper returns to the stairs and he looks down and notices more light shining through underneath, he looks up and notices a door, blending in as part of the wall. He walks closer to the door, turns the latch and finds Dager inside and his jaw drops.

"What the hell are you doing?"


	19. Chapter 17: Guilty Inside

**a/n: hey everyone! sorry it took so long to get back to you again. i keep promising not to be long, but then i get caught up in school work and my other activities and i don't get time to type up the updates i work on like everyday during free time in class LOL. so finally, i got some time to type up this chapter and come up with plans all the way to it's end and it's sequel, so for now, i hope you enjoy this chapter and please don't forget to review.**

** 3 Maureen**

**Chapter Seventeen: **_Guilty Inside_

Lucas steps up on the porch and knocks on the door. Thirty or so seconds later, Peyton is walking to it, holding seven month old Ellie on her hip.

"Hey Luke," Peyton says as she holds the door open for him.

"Hey," he says as he steps inside. He smiles at the baby and says, "Hey gorgeous. How're you doing?"

Ellie smiles as Lucas tickles her. Peyton smiles at her daughter and says, "She's keeping mommy very busy. But that's good…it keeps her mind off of other things."

Lucas nods, understanding exactly what Peyton is referring to. Keeping busy…it's the only way to keep himself from thinking about Brooke every second he's without her.

"Where are the girls?" He asks, quickly changing the subject as he follows Peyton into the living room.

"In the backyard with Anna and Ryan," Peyton answers as she sets Ellie down in the playpen.

"Thanks for picking them up from school and watching them. Both my mom and Keith were busy with work today, and Kelsey with school stuff and I had to take my grade book and lesson plans to my sub at school and then take care of the store, so I really appreciate your help."

"Oh, of course. You know Jake and I are here to help with whatever you need."

"I hope they weren't too much trouble."

"No…they were great. They're always good for me."

Lucas moves over and sits down on the couch as he says, "I know. They've been so good lately, which is great, but…"

"You're worried about them," Peyton finishes.

Lucas nods again and says, "Especially Jessilyn. She just…hasn't been herself lately. She's so quiet at home now, and she's been in school barely a month and her teacher says she's really distant and pays little attention in class. That's really not her Peyton. She's always done so well at school. This is really hurting her…she was so close to Brooke."

"Not 'was', Luke…they 'are' close. Brooke is still out there…somewhere. And we're going to find her…she'll be back with us soon."

Peyton can see the hurt in her friend's eyes as he says, "I know…but what if I can't find her in time? What if he hurts her before—"

"You can't think like that, Luke. You have to believe it'll be okay…you have to have faith. You taught me that, remember?"

Lucas nods, but remains quiet. He's trying so hard to push back his tears, but it's not working.

"I don't know how I can believe in it, Peyton," he says softly with a glisten in his eyes. "I don't know how I can do it, especially when it's all my fault."

"What? Luke, none of this is your fault."

"But it is. The last time I saw or talked to Brooke was during a fight. She was so pissed at me for not being home and she was right. I hadn't been home much and maybe if I had been she wouldn't have stormed out like she did. Or maybe I could've been with her too—"

"Luke, stop…you can't do this to yourself. She would've left the house anyway. She had plans to go out with Haley even before you got home. Trust me…I know how you feel."

Peyton's eyes grow heavy too as she continues, "I feel so guilty too, Luke. I talked to her before she left. I was supposed to meet them. And I've been thinking a lot lately…what if I had met them sooner? Would this have happened? But Jake has helped me figure out that I couldn't have had any control over the situation, and neither could you. Dan would've just hurt or taken anyone who got in his way, like he did Cooper. Now we just have to deal with what happened and get through it. We have to have faith, Luke."

She takes his hand and he squeezes it. He sits up and hugs her tight. He hsn't even realized he'd been holding in so much guilt before now. And he never thought Peyton might be holding in guilt too. And if both he and Peyton are holding guilt inside, chances are his brother is holding some in too.

He stops in front of the first bedroom door on the left wall. He stares at it for a moment with his hand frozen on the knob, trying to decide if he can go in, if he's ready to go in. Finally he completes the turn of the knob and pushes the door open, deciding that maybe going in will allow him to be closer to them in some way.

Nathan enters the room…the brand new nursery with walls painted baby blue, white painted clouds spread out on the four blue walls. Against the back wall near the windows, is the white wood crib with blue Winnie the Pooh crib liner. Against the wall opposite the door and next to the closet, is the white changing table, also with Winnie the Pooh liner. On the wall adjacent to the door is a white dresser. Sitting on top of the dresser are three picture frames.

Nathan steps up to the dresser to get a closer look at them. The largest frame holds the photo of the whole family. He smiles at it. He remembers Haley insisting that they buy an extra one so the new baby could have one to look at. Another picture is of Nathan and Haley together, outside, Haley with her arms wrapped around his neck from the back, leaning her head against his as they both grin.

_God…is she beautiful_, he thinks. _I love that smile…I miss that smile. _Before his thoughts of her can bring more tears, Nathan focuses in on the smallest photo…the second sonogram photo inside a white picture frame with red, blue and yellow letters spelling out "I get my good looks from my daddy."

He smiles again and remembers the day they bought that frame, right after they went for that sonogram…

"_Are you excited?" Haley asked him as he helped her onto the table in the doctor's office._

"_You know I am," he replied with a smile._

_Haley laid back on the table as Nathan pulled a stool closer to her and sat down._

"_It feels strange, though," she said after a minute, "this is our last baby. This is the last time we'll ever do this."_

"_Well, it doesn't have to be," Nathan reasoned. "WE can always make another one after this little one, if that's what you want."_

_Haley smiled and said, "No…five kids is just the right number for our family I think."_

_Nathan smiled back as he took her hand in his. They both looked at the door as it opened. Doctor Mitchell entered with a chart._

"_Good morning, Mr. and Mrs. Scott," she greeted as she closed the door. "How are you today?"_

"_Great," they replied in unison and smiled when the doctor smiled at them again._

"_You're both excited to find out the sex today, aren't you?" Doctor Mitchell asked as she set the chart on the counter._

"_Yes," Haley replied._

"_We need to know what color paint to buy," Nathan added with yet another smile._

_Doctor Mitchell chuckled and said, "Okay, then, I guess we'll get started."_

_She moved back over to the door to turn out the light. As she returned to Haley's side with the ultra sound machine, she asked, "So Haley, have you been feeling okay? Everything feel normal?"_

"_Yeah…I feel great."_

"_Good," doctor Mitchell squeezed the gel on Haley's stomach and said, "Now, let's see how your little one is doing."_

_Doctor Mitchell turned on the machine and after she turned up the volume, they heard the rapid heart beat. Haley and Nathan both grinned again when they saw their baby on the screen._

"_Everything looks fantastic Haley," doctor Mitchell said. "Strong heartbeat and healthy weight…and it looks like, in about five months, you'll be welcoming another son into your family."_

_Nathan smiled again as he looked at Haley. Tears were in her eyes too as she smiled at him._

"_We're having a boy…another little boy," she said. "Can you believe it?"_

_He touched her face and said, "I love you."_

"_I love you too."_

_And he kissed her…_

He turns away from the dresser as a tear slides down his cheek…again. He sits down n the rocking chair in the corner, first picking up the blue teddy bear and holding it in his lap. His mind goes back to them, to his family, especially Haley. He can't stop thinking about it…he can't get over it…he can't forget about it…the feeling inside of him telling him this is all his fault.

"I should've been there for you, Haley," he says out loud to himself. "I should've been there…for all of you."

The house is silent and dark. Everyone is asleep…well, Haley, Brooke and Henry are asleep. And he, Cooper is hoping Dan has finally gone to sleep too. He on the other hand, cannot sleep anymore. He's too anxious about the idea that if Dager's plan works, he and his family may finally be getting out of here…

"_What the hell are you doing?" Cooper asked when he found Marcus in the basement under the stairs. "What is all this stuff?"_

"_Shh…" Marcus urged, holding his hands up. Cooper walked in closer to the tables built onto the wall._

_He looked down at the junk on the table, among it all, were wires, plastic, screwdrivers, pliers, assorted batteries, cords and…_

"_What the hell…"Cooper picked it up from the table. "You have a cell phone?"_

"_No, Cooper, let me explain," Marcus said as he closed the door again._

"_Explain what? That we've been stuck here for three months and you've had a way out the whole time?"_

"_No…I mean…yes, I've had that, but it doesn't work. I've been trying to fix it and build a charger so it will work."_

"_Right…you really expect me to believe that's what you've been doing? You're the reason we're even in this mess."_

"_It's the truth, I swear. I've been working on it every day, whenever I can get away since we got here. It's why I've been so tired…I've been staying up all night while Dan's asleep trying to figure out what I need to do to fix it and then actually fix it. And if I can fix it, then we can call someone and tip them off to where I think we might be."_

"_Why?" Cooper asked, staring at him with a furrowed vrow._

_Marcus stared back at him for a minute and answered, "Because I want to help. None of you would be in this situation if I hadn't taken Dan's offer when I could've put him away. I was selfish back then, but I'm not anymore, and I want to prove that to you and your mom and your aunt. I want to make up for what I did and helping you get out of here is the only way I can make amends."_

That was a month ago. Since then, Cooper has been helping Dager with anything and everything he can, whenever he can sneak away without Dan or his mom and Brooke finding out what they're doing. Like while everyone is asleep…it's the perfect opportunity.

He quietly climbs out of his bed and walks over to the door, passing the play pen with his sleeping brother inside. He looks over at the bed across the room where his mother and aunt are sleeping as he slowly and quietly turns the knob and pulls the door open and close it gently after slipping outside.

Once outside the room, Cooper makes his way down the hall to the basement. Again, he is careful to be quiet as he walks down the stairs and sighs relief when he reaches the bottom. He knocks softly twice on the door.

"It's me, "he says before opening the door.

Marcus glances at Cooper as he enters, but goes back to his work at the table.

"How's it going?" Cooper asks as he closes the door and pulls up a stool next to Marcus. "And progress?"

"Not much. I mean, I finally got the phone part working, but it's still dead. And now, the hard part is building a working charger with scarce supplies."

"Well, are you going to be able to do it?"

"Yeah, I think so. I've written out all the calculations and the drawn out figures of what I need to do, so not it just comes down to actually building it, which could take even longer to do then it took to fix the phone itself."

"But it's not impossible, right? You'll be able to pull it off?"

"Yeah…I'm not going to stop trying until it's done."

Cooper nods and says, "Thanks…thank you, for doing this."

Marcus nods and says, "Yeah, well, I owe you."

They don't say anything more for a few minutes until Marcus asks, "Have you told your mom and Brooke about this?"

"No, not yet. I don't think I should say anything until it's done, or close to being done. I know mom will flip and Brooke probably too, and I don't think she should stress herself out with worrying about it. I don't want her to have the baby too soon or here without my uncle by her side."

Marcus nods again and says, "yeah…good idea."

Cooper stays with Marcus awhile longer, talking about the plan again, before he heads back upstairs as quietly as he came down. He sneaks back into the bedroom and closes the door again. He looks down in the playpen and pulls the blanket higher over the infant's tiny body.

"Sleep tight, baby brother," he whispers, touching his brother's soft brown head.

He stands up to return to his bed.

"Where've you been, Coop?"


	20. Chapter 18: Baby Steps

**a/n: wow, i'm so proud of myself for getting this up so soon. LOL. i hope you enjoy it. please review!!!**

**Chapter Eighteen: **_Baby Steps_

Cooper turns quickly at his mother's voice. She's sitting up at the end of the bed where Brooke is still sleeping.

"Mom," he says, sighing relief. "You scared the crap out of me, I thought you were asleep."

"Yeah, I could say the same thing," Haley says. "I heard you get up and leave the bedroom, and I figured you were just going to use the bathroom, but you've been gone for 45 minutes. What were you doing?"

Cooper sighs again. He doesn't want to tell her about the plan before he knows for sure it will work.

"Cooper," Haley interrupts his thoughts. "What's going on? Where were you?"

_I guess I have to tell her now, _he thinks as he stares at his mother. _I wanted to wair a little longer, but I don't want to lie to her either. She deserves to know. _

"I was talking to Marcus," he answers finally.

"About what? It's three o'clock in the morning.

Cooper hesitates again, but he says, "I want to tell you, Mom, but we should wait until later…aunt Brooke deserves to know too."

"Know what?" Haley asks impatiently, walking toward her son.

"I really think we should wait to talk about it until Brooke is awake," Cooper says as Haley stops in front of him.

"Go ahead," Brooke says from the bed as she sits up. "I'm awake."

After ringing the doorbell twice, Nathan opens the door to his brother's house and steps inside.

"Luke? You home?" He bellows as he closes the door.

"Yeah, I'm upstairs," he hears his brother holler back.

Nathan makes his way upstairs and finds Lucas in his office, putting his files and other things from his now bare desk in boxes.

"Hey," he says when he sees him, " You deaf? I rang the bell twice."

"Yeah…I didn't feel like going down to answer the door. I didn't know you were coming over. I thought you were starting back to work today?"

"No," Nathan says, shaking his head as he leans against the wall. "I'm not ready to go back, not while Chloe's still afraid of her own shadow and James isn't talking to me. I need to get through to both of them first. So I took a sabbatical. Besides…if I went back to work, I wouldn't be able to concentrate."

"I know what you mean," Lucas says, stopping to look at his brother. "So where is Chloe anyway?"

"With my mom. I'm on my way to pick her up…we have another appoint with the psychologist today."

Lucas nods, "How's that going?"

Nathan sighs as he stares at Lucas and remembers the last appointment…

_Doctor Caller had him bring Chloe over to a little art table where she had paper and crayons set out for her._

"_Okay, Chloe, "Doctor Caller said as she knelt down to face her. "Your daddy told me you like to color, so do you think you can draw me a picture?"_

_Chloe stared at the doctor as she held Nathan's hand, but she didn't respond._

"_Can you draw me a picture of your family, Chloe?" Doctor Caller asked again._

_Chloe looked up at Nathan, as if asking permission. Nathan nodded and said, "Go ahead, honey. Sit down and draw the picture for Doctor Caller. Draw your family."_

_He sat her down in the chair and he and the doctor watched as she picked up a crayon and started drawing. _

"_Nathan," Doctor Caller said after a few minutes, "can we talk over here for a few minutes?"_

_She stood up and Nathan started to, but Chloe stopped drawing and looked up at him. He could tell from her expression that she did not want him to leave her at the table alone. _

"_It's okay, Chloe," he said. "I'll just be over there on the couch talking to the doctor. You keep drawing. I'll be right there."_

_He kissed her dark head before meeting the doctor on the other side of the room._

"_What's up?" He asked as he sat down on the couch._

"_I wanted to bring you over here because we need to give Chloe some time to herself. She needs to learn to be by herself, to not be afraid to be by herself so that once she works through this, she doesn't panic whenever you're not there by her side."_

"_Okay…but I thought we were going to have her work through what happened first?"_

"_We are…that's what I'm having her draw the picture for, and we'll get to that part with her when he's done. But fear of abandonment is another part of the PTS. She needs to overcome that fear and be able to be by herself. It is very important that we help her get through that as soon as we can so that she will be able to be away from you when she starts school. But it's going to take quite awhile before she'll be ready for that, so we need to start slowly and now. The more we practice with her, the more we help her."_

_Nathan nodded again. He turned his head when Chloe tapped his knee._

"_Hey," he said. "Did you finish your picture?"_

_Chloe nodded as she shyly held her hand up by her ear._

"_Great," doctor Caller said as she stood up. "Can you show it to us, Chloe?"_

_Chloe took Nathan's hand and he stood as she pulled him over back to the table. She let go of his hand and sat down in front of her picture as Nathan sat in the chair next to her, and doctor Caller across from her._

_Nathan looked down at his daughter's picture. It was very colorful and she drew very well for a three year old. But as colorful and well draw as the picture was, it still made him sad to look at it. Doctor Caller had asked Chloe to draw a picture of her family, and she did. She'd drawn her father, James and Katie off to the left side bottom of the paper, and herself on the right side bottom, with a tear puddle at her feet. But the most depressing and disturbing part of the picture was what she'd drawn at the top; Haley and Cooper and someone else, who Nathan had to assume was supposed to be Dan, as Chloe had drawn him in black and very close to Cooper with hands wrapped around Cooper._

"_Is this your family, Chloe?" Doctor Caller asked after looking at the picture. _

_Chloe nodded. Doctor Caller pointed to the child sketch of Nathan._

"_Is this your daddy?"_

_Chloe nodded for him, as she then did when the doctor asked about James, Katie and herself._

"_And this is your mommy and your big brother?" Doctor Caller pointed to them at the top._

_Chloe stared at that point on the paper with the longest frown Nathan had ever seen from her. He watched his daughter as the doctor continued speaking to her._

"_So who's this man holding your big brother?"_

_Chloe didn't answer. She merely stared at the spot on the paper. But they waited for her to say something…she was so close, closer than she had been at previous sessions. Finally realizing that she was not ready to speak yet, the doctor continued._

"_Is this the man who took them Chloe? Is he the one who took your mommy and your brother?"_

_Chloe nodded slowly…finally._

"_And it scared you when he took them, didn't it?" Caller continued. "You didn't want him to take them or hurt them, or to leave you all by yourself. You were—"_

"_No!" Chloe screamed as she grabbed the paper and ripped it. "Mommy! Cooper!"_

"_Hey, hey, shh!" Nathan said as he stood up wuickly and tried to calm his screaming daughter. "Chloe, Chloe, it's okay!"_

_He got a hold of her and picked her up as she settled her screams to heavy sobs._

"Wow," Lucas says after Nathan tells him of Choe's last session with the therapist. "That's quite a breakthrough for her."

"I think it was more of a breakdown than a break through," Nathan says. "I mean, yeah…she finally said something for the first time in four months, and she finally made herself aware of what happened, but now she feels the pain from it Luke…all over again, the same pain she felt that day. And she hasn't gotten any better since that day with the doctor…she hasn't said anything since."

"Yeah, but at least she's making some progress…it may not be much, but it's some. She's remembering what happened, and now maybe she can deal with what happened."

"Yeah, maybe, but she still won't be over any of it until she sees Haley and Cooper again and knows they're both safe."

Lucas walks over to his brother and hugs him.

"I guess we can all understand that feeling, then. She'll be okay, Nate. She'll be the same, bouncy, happy Chloe again….when they're home…and they will be."

Nathan nods and Lucas returns to his work.

"So what are you doing in here anyway?" Nathan wonders as he walks up to him and the boxes.

"I am moving my office down to the basement so I can turn this room into a nursery for the baby when we bring him or her and Brooke home, which hopefully we'll bring Brooke home first before the baby comes."

"You're doing this now?"

"Yeah…I've been outing it off, hoping that we would find them first and then Brooke and I would decide on all this together, but I need something to do, so…you know."

"Yeah," Nathan said nodding. " So what about the girls then? Have you told them about the baby yet?"

"No…not yet," Lucas answers after a sigh. "That's something else I've been avoidin. I don't know how I'm going to tell them, how I'm going to explain it to them when they're confused, but I am going to."

"When?"

"Today…when they get home from school."

"Hey," Haley says as she enters the bedroom with Henry forward against her waist, the way she has figured out he prefers to be when she carries him. "What are you up to?"

Brooke looks up at Haley from the bed and smiles as Haley sits down next to her with Henry, who is wide awake.

"Hi…hey handsome!" Brooke says to her nephew, touching his tiny nose. "You're awfully bouncy today."

"Yeah, he is," Haley says with a smile as she stands her son up on the bed, but still holding on to him under his arms. "He's usually ready for a nap by now."

"I bet he's just in too good a mood to sleep," Brooke suggests. Then she whispers more quietly, "He probably knows we'll be getting out of here very soon."

"Well, that can't be the reason you're so chipper," Haley says, looking at Brooke as she sits Henry in her lap. "At least not the only reason, 'cause you know this plan of Dager's might not work."

"Yeah, I know…that's why I've kept my mind on other stuff."

"Like what?" Haley smiles.

"I felt the baby kick for the first time today, "Brooke says with a smile as she touches her stomach. "It's what woke me up today."

"That's great, Brooke. It's good to finally see you smile about something."

Brooke nods and says, "It feels good to finally be smiling about something. Oh! And check this out too…"

She leans over and picks up something from her nightstand. It's a a piece of thick string with a ring tied at the end of it. Haley smiles as she watches Brooke hold the string above her baby bump.

"You've heard of this old wives tale, haven't you?" Brooke says as she watches the string begin to swing. "Where you hold it above your stomach, and if it swings back forth, it's a boy…but if it swings in more of a circle, than it's a girl…or so they say."

"Yeah, I've heard of it." Haley says as she watches as sits Henry in her lap again. They both remain quiet as they watch the string, waiting to see which direction it will swing. Finally, it appears to swing…

"Back and forth," Haley says, and she looks up at Brooke's face with a smile. "Do you think it's boy?"

"I don't know," Brooke says as she slides the string with her wedding ring back around her neck, since her fingers have gotten to swollen to wear the ring. "It's just an old wives tale, right? I mean, Lucas wants a boy, but I'm so used to girls, and I relate to them better, but I do think a little boy with Lucas as his daddy and me as his mother would be so adorable."

"Oh, of course," Haley said with a smile.

Brooke chuckles and says, "I'll be happy with a boy or a girl, as long as it's healthy and safe."

Haley looks down at Brooke's lap and says, "What's that?"

"Oh," Brooke said as she took the notebook in her hands. "I was just trying to think of some names, boy and girl, and I've thought of a couple, but my mind is kind of all over the place right now, so…"

"You can't concentrate?"

"No, I just really have to pee."

Haley chuckled as Brooke slid off the bed.

"Lucas, we're home!" Karen shouts as she follows her granddaughters into the house through the garage door.

Lucas steps off the last stair and meets his family in the kitchen.

"Hey girls," he says with a smile.

"Hi Daddy!" the twins say in unison as they run over to hug him.

As they finish their hug, Jessilyn returns to the kitchen from the living room.

"Hey Jess," Lucas says as he stands again. "How was school?"

"Same as always," Jessilyn replies sullenly as she takes off her book bag.

"Well, will a hug make you feel better?" He asks as he moves closer to his daughter as Karen helps the twins remove their book bags.

Jessilyn smiles at her father as he hugs her.

"I missed my Jessi bear today," Lucas says as he holds her in the hug.

"I missed you too, Dad," Jessilyn says pulling out of the hug.

Lucas looks over at the twins and says, "okay girls. Why don't all three of you take your stuff upstairs and then come back down. I need to talk to you about something."

"Okay," the twins say as they run for the stairs with their things. Jessilyn following behind.

Lucas walks over to his mother as she asks, "What's going on? Did you hear something?"

"No," Lucas says as he leans against the counter. "I've decided to tell them about the baby."

Karen nods her head and asks, "Do you want me to stay with you?"

"No, thanks," Lucas says, touching his mother's shoulder. "I think I need to do this standing on my own. It's time for me to the parent."

"Okay, honey. I'll get going back to the café then."

She kisses his cheek and walks away.

"Lucas," she says, stopping at the door. "You are, you know."

"What?"

Karen smiles and finishes, "A great parent."

"Thanks, Mom."

He watches as she leaves again through the backdoor.

"Okay, Dad," Megyn says as she and her sisters return to the kitchen. "What do you want to talk about?"

"Come on," he says, ushering them to the living room. "Let's sit down."


	21. Chapter 19: Acceptance & Forgiveness

**Chapter Nineteen: **_Acceptance & Forgiveness_

_This isn't how it's supposed to be, _Dan thinks as he sits alone in the living room. The others are in their rooms, away from him like they have been more and more often now. _They're supposed to surround me, not stay far away from me. _

_Haven't they realized that this is their life now? That this home and this family I have offered them is as good as it's going to get? This is how it's going to be from now on. Why don't they understand that? Why won't they accept me?_

"They will," Dan convinces himself. "They'll accept me. It'll just take a little prodding…a little coaxing."

He stands up and walks to the bedroom door. When he opens the door, Cooper is playing with Henry on the floor, and Haley and Brooke are sitting on the bed talking.

"What do you want?" Haley asks, glaring at him.

"I 'm going out for a few things," Dan says, nicer than he's spoken to them before. "Do you need anything?"

"You mean other than to be home with our families?" Brooke says nastily.

"I'm trying to be nice here," Dan says.

Still glaring at him, Haley says, "Yeah…we need more diapers, formula, and—"

"Batteries," Cooper says. Dan looks at him strangely.

"For my CD player and for the remote to the TV, " he recovers quickly. "What else would I need batteries for?"

Dan nods slowly and then looks over at Brooke.

"How about you?"

Brooke continues glaring at him, holding herself back from asking for anything. She doesn't want a single thing from him other than freedom. But her hunger and pregnancy cravings overrule her answer.

"Ice cream," she finally answers. "Moose tracks and cookie dough…lots of it."

Dan nods again, "Okay…I'll be back in awhile."

"What are you watching?" Nathan asks James as he enters the living room and sits on the couch.

James glances at him from the chair in front of the television , but he doesn't answer.

Nathan sighs and says, "Come on, James…I can't take this anymore. I can't take you not talking to me. I admit I made a mistake, okay, a huge mistake by not telling you and I'm sorry. If I could change my decision, I would. I would do anything to have you talking to me again…just like I'd do anything to help your sister and to have been there to save your mom and your brother and Brooke."

Nathan waits for a response, but he gets none. As he stands and leaves the room, James turns his head and watches.

Lucas carries two paint cans up the stairs and enters the room previously his office. He sets the cans down next to the paint trays and stares at the blank walls, deciding where to begin. Jessilyn quietly enters the room.

"Hi, Dad," she says.

Lucas looks at her and smiles, "Hey Jess. What are you up to?"

"Nothin'…just thinking."

"About what?"

"Mommy."

Lucas walks over to her and sits next to her on the floor against the wall on which the door is hinged.

"Are we gonna find her before she has the baby?" Jessilyn asks, looking up at her father.

"I hope so," Lucas replies honestly. "The police in every state are looking for them and we're looking everywhere here, and no one is going to give up until we find them."

"You don't think the man who took mommy will hurt her or the baby, do you?"

"I won't let him."

"But how can you—"

"Trust me, Jess, okay? I would never let anyone hurt your mom or any of you. You mean to much to me…you girls are my whole life."

Jessilyn nods. She looks around the room and says, "So this is gonna be the baby's room?"

"Yeah," Lucas says as he stands up with his daughter. "I was trying to decide what color to paint it. What do you think?"

"Is it going to be another sister, or a brother?"

"I don't know."

She looks around the room again, then looks back at her father and asks, "Can I make another suggestion?"

Lucas smiles…he loves her big words, and her suggestions.

"Sure."

"Maybe we should just leave it like this for now, and then when mom is home and after we find out if the baby is a boy or a girl, we paint something really special on the walls, something that fits his or her personality. I like painting things with aunt Peyton and she's taught me a few things… I could help."

Lucas nod, still with a smile, and he says, "That…is a great idea."

Jessilyn smiles back.

Katie enters the kitchen and stands next to her brother at the counter. He's pouring milk into a glass next to a plate of cookies. James looks down at her and smiles.

"Do you want some?" He asks.

"Yes please," Katie replies.

James pulls down another glass from the cupboard and fills it half full of milk for his sister. Katie waits for him at the table. First he brings the milk to the table and then grabs the cookies from the counter and sits down across from his sister.

"Did nana make these?" Katie asks before biting down on her chocolate chip cookie.

"Yep," James answers through a mouthful. "They're good, huh?"

Katie nods and after she swallows she asks, "Jamee, can I ask you a question and you promise not to get mad?"

"Yeah, Kate. What?"

"How come you still don't talk to daddy?"

James is quiet while he finishes another bite.

"It's kind of complicated, Kate," he answers once finished. "He lied to me about something really important."

"What did he lie about?"

"It's kind of hard to explain."

"Does it have to do with whoever took mom, Coop and aunt Brooke?"

"Yeah…why are you so curious about this?"

"'Cause I'm worried about dad. He's so sad, Jamee. He's sad over mom and Coop and Chloe and because you won't talk to him. I can tell he is really sorry about whatever he did. So maybe you should just forgive him. Mommy would want you to."

"I can't, Kate…I'm too scared."

"I'm scared too. I don't want anything bad to happen to them. But being scared and angry all the time and blaming daddy doesn't help. It wasn't his fault."

James continues staring at his almost seven year old sister, amazed by her wise words.

"We weren't even there that day and we're scared. Think about how Chloe feels…she saw what happened and look what it's doing to her. She's only three, so she doesn't know what to do, but you do. So why are you letting what happened hurt you and daddy too."

"I'm not."

"Yes you are. You don't talk to dad anymore and that hurts him. He's trying really hard to find mom and Coop and take care of us and you're just making it harder for him. Maybe you should be making it easier instead."

Again, James stares at his little sister as she walks away from him and out of the room.

James stares at the ceiling of his dark bedroom as he lays in bed with his headphones on, trying to fall asleep. But he can't sleep…he can't get out of his mind everything his little sister had said to him earlier.

He's too afraid to talk about what happened…he doesn't want anything worse to happen…that's why he's still not talking to his father. He's still angry at him for lying to him, but he understands now that he was just trying to protect him. And he knows that what happened isn't his dad's fault, but he just felt like he needed to put the blame somewhere, take it out on someone.

Unable to sleep and tired of laying awake, James removes his headphones and climbs out of bed. He leaves his room for the bedroom across the hall. He slowly opens the door and closes it quietly after he enters. He makes his way to the bed where Chloe sleeps. Two nightstand tables stand in between her bed and Katelynn's.

James sits down on the floor with his back against Chloe's bed. He wraps his arms around his knees and turns his head to look at her fast asleep.

"I'm glad you're sleeping okay, sis," he says quietly. He looks ahead of him again. "Maybe it means you're getting better."

He's quiet with his thoughts a few minutes, deciding what he wants to say.

"I hope you do get better soon, Chlo," he says. "I hate seeing you so scared and lonely…I remember feeling like that. I hate that you had to see Dan take mom and Coop…I hate that he even took them. But he's not going to hurt them…dad's going to make sure of that. I know he will…he didn't let him hurt me. And he loves them too much to let anything happen to them."

He looks back at Chloe and continues, "Just like he would never let anything happen to you. You're safe with us, Chloe. No one is going to hurt you or take you, not while I'm your big brother and me and dad are protecting you. I promise…you'll be okay. They found me when Dan took me, so I know they'll find mom and Coop."

He turns around on his knees and touches his sister's head, moving her black hair from her face.

"I know you can't understand anything because you're sleeping, but I hope that maybe you can hear me. And if you can, then you will understand when you're awake and maybe it will help you get better. You can help yourself, Chloe…I know you can."

He leans up and kisses her head.

"I love you, sis," he says before standing up.

He stops at the door when he hears her move in bed.

"Love you…" he hears her voice.

He can see that her eyes are still closed, yet he smiles. She heard him…and that's a start…

_Let's see…if I connect this wire to this wire, and—no…that won't work._

With everyone asleep and Dan away, Marcus continues his work under the stairs of the basement. It's the only time he has to work on it. Dan's been keeping a closer eye on him lately and looking at him suspiciously, so Marcus has made sure not to let him find out anything. And he's been napping more in the day now so he can be awake at night.

_But what if I…yes, maybe this battery and this wire…and then connect these two wires, and…no way…_

"It can't be…not this soon," he says out loud. "It can't be that easy."

He quickly puts the back on the charger he's spent weeks building and adjusting trying to get it to work. He plugs the fatter end of the cord (which he found and attached to the charger) into the wall. He reaches over and brings the phone to him and plugs the skinnier end of the cord into it. The phone beeps, lights up and across the screen flashes **CHARGING…** Marcus smiles…_it's working._

**_a/n: ooooh, i know you guys hate cliff hangers like that, but this is where i am now, so hopefully you will not have to wait too long to see what happens. but i promise...i'm sure you'll like what's in store...if you liek a lot of drama...PLEASE REVIEW!!!_**


	22. Chapter 20: Thank God for That

**_okay everyone...I have worked all day on this chapter and really concentrating, so i really hope you all enjoy it. please don't forget to review!!1_**

**_-Maureen_**

**Chapter Twenty: **_Thank God for That_

Nathan has his head lowered when James enters the kitchen. He is working on paperwork he brought home from the station when he stopped in earlier. Occasionally, he will look up and in the living room at his daughters watching cartoons, waiting to go to school. James walks over and sits down in the chair next to him without his notice.

"I'm sorry," James says Nathan looks up at him.

"For what?" Nathan asks, so relieved to be looking at his son and having him finally speaking to him.

"For not talking to you for so long…and for blaming you for what happened. I know, I have known it wasn't your fault. I just…I was just so mad at you for not telling me Dan took them, but even more angry and scared at finding out that it was him who took them. And…I guess I was kind of angry at myself too."

Nathan curled his eyebrows in curiosity and he says, "What? Why?"

"Because maybe if I had just listened to Dan and not tried to runaway from him back then, he would never have taken them. He would've had me instead."

"No, Jamee," Nathan says, turning his chair. "this is not your fault. You can't think like that. You were five years old and Dan…he's psychotic and just messed up in a really twisted way. And now we just have to find him so we can lock him up so he can't hurt anyone anymore. And we will Jamee…we will find them, I promise."

James nods and says, "I know, Dad…I believe you. After all, you believe in me when I need you too. Now it's my turn to believe in you…and I do."

Nathan smiles and stands up to hug his son. James stands up too for the hug.

"I love you, son," Nathan says as they hold their hug, James as tall as Nathan's chest.

"I love you too, Dad."

"Thanksgiving is in two days, " Haley says as she stares down at Henry on his stomach on the floor. Brooke and Cooper are on either side of her on the couch, watching the television until they heard her speak. Dan and Marcus look at her too.

Haley looks up at Brooke and finishes, "It'll be Henry's first one. And it falls on the 23rd this year."

"Katie's birthday," Cooper remembers.

Brooke rubs her friend's back and says, "It'll be okay, honey."

Dan watches them from the other couch. He sighs, stands up and walks over to the closet by the front door as the others watch him.

"What's that?" Haley asks as Dan pulls from the closet, a large brown packing box.

Dan closes the door with his foot and sets the box on the couch where he had just been sitting.

"This," he says as he begins to open the box, "is some stuff I got the last time I went out. I was saving it for Thanksgiving, but you've all been really good lately. I think you deserve it."

Cooper and Marcus stand up and move over to the box as Haley helps Brooke up before bending down and lifting her son from the floor. Cooper pulls from the box CDs and a handheld video game. Then, Marcus pulls out a big book. When Haley and Brooke search the box's contents, they find baby clothes, blankets, disposable cameras and toys.

"What the hell is all this?" Brooke asks, looking at Dan.

"Well, they're presents, I guess…to thank you for being here with me."

Marcus and Cooper glance at each other as Brooke and Haley do the same. Then, Haley looks at Dan and says, "Are you serious? No, I'm sorry…are you nuts? You're thanking us for being here with you?"

"Yeah," Dan replies. "I thought you'd like these things."

"Well, we don't like them, "Brooke says. "We don't like any of this. What we would like is to be home."

"This is home, "Dan says. "Don't you see? This is what I've been trying to make for you all this time…a home…a family."

"A family?" Brooke says as the four of them stare at Dan like he's crazy. "You have got to be kidding me. You will never be our family. We have families and you're keeping us from them. You're psychotic, mean and twisted, and we hate you more than any person on this planet, in this universe. No one could ever love you like family…you messed that up a long time ago."

Dan looks away from them, wanting to hide the pain in his expression that he was feeling inside. _No, wait…I will not let them hurt me…no way._

"Fine," he responds as he turns back quickly and stuffs everything back in the box. "if you don't want it, then I'll take it back."

Once the box is full again, Dan closes it and storms out the door, though not forgetting the locks. Brooke, Haley and Cooper stare at one another as Haley moves Henry to her right hip.

"Good," Marcus speaks and the others look at him. "He's out of the house. Now we can hurry and get downstairs."

They continue staring at him, waiting for him to finish.

"The phone…it's ready."

"So you and James are good now?" Lucas asks Nathan, sitting next to him and across from Peyton and Jake at a table in his mother's café. They had all decided to meet for lunch while the kids were at school and daycare. It's been awhile since they all got to be together to talk.

"Yes," Nathan replies, leaning back in his chair. "We talked this morning, and we're going to be okay now. I think we may even understand each other better."

"That's good, Nate," Jake says.

"Yeah," Peyton agrees. "I'm glad you two worked things out."

"Me too." Nathan says, nodding.

"Speaking of working things out," Lucas says, "what are we all doing about Thanksgiving? We haven't made any plans for that."

"Wow…" Nathan says. "I forgot about it, which is bad since this year it's Katie's birthday too. Everything's just been so…"

"Crazy?" Jake finishes.

"If that's not the biggest understatement of the year."

"Well, whatever you guys decide you want to do," Peyton says, "you need to make sure it's normal for the kids. God knows they've been through enough not normal, chaotic stuff the last few months."

"I agree," Lucas says. "So what will we do?"

"How did you get it working so soon?" Cooper asks Marcus as they enter the room under the stairs, along with Brooke and Haley, with Henry in her arms.

"I have no idea, to be honest," Marcus replies. "I just kept working and working, trying everything, every connection I could think of until I found the right one. I guess I'm better at this than I thought."

"So…" Brooke starts with disbelief in her voice. "does it work? I mean, will we be able to use it? Will we be able to reach someone?"

"I think so," Marcus answers with a sigh. "I mean, if there's a tower anywhere near, we should hopefully be able to get service and make the call. The only thing I'm not sure of is how well the call will go through or how long the phone will hold out. It's still a very old and damaged phone and we were very lucky to get it working this far. But I think it should last for at least one phone call. So whoever we contact may be the only person we will get to contact. It just depends on the life of the phone. "

"We need to do this quickly though," he continues after a minute, "before Dan comes back. So you guys decide who you want to call."

Cooper looks over at his mother, who looks at Brooke.

"I think…" Haley began," …that you should call Lucas first."

"Me? First? Really? But what about you? What if we don't have enough power to call Nathan?"

"It'll be okay," Haley replies, shifting Henry higher. "If we get a hold of Lucas, then he'll tell Nathan we're okay. Besides, it's been longer since you've gotten to talk to Lucas. I talked to Nathan right before we got to the bank that day. And you and Lucas ended your last conversation badly, so now you can tell him you love him, and tell him about the baby too."

Brooke takes her friend's hand and with watery eyes she asks, "Are you sure?"

"Yeah, honey," Haley replies softly. "It's okay…really. You go first. Call his cell…maybe he and Nathan are together. "

Brooke nods and looks at Marcus.

"Okay…so if this works, if the call goes through and I reach him…what do I tell him. Do you have any idea where we are?"

"Well, I'm not positive where," Marcus starts. "but I'm pretty sure we're in Canada. I remember crossing the border and Dan had to provide birth certificates for the both of us. That's why he got the van with no windows too…so he could hide all of you."

"Do you know how far into Canada we are?" Cooper asks.

Marcus shakes his head, "No, sorry. I wish I did…it would make it a hell of a lot easier for them to find us. "

"Well, we can at least tell him where we think we are" Haley says. "So go ahead, Brooke. We have to do this before Dan returns."

Brooke nods and picks up the phone still attached to the cord. Her hands are trembling as she lifts it and dials the number stored in her own memory and in her heart.

"So Jenny is coming home tonight to be here for Thursday," Jake says to his friends with his arm wrapped around Peyton's shoulders as they sit on the couch in the café.

Nathan and Lucas are sitting in chairs next to the couch.

"Yeah, and my dad will be home tomorrow night and he's going to spend the holiday with us this year," Peyton adds.

"That's great," Lucas says. "I know you both really miss both of them."

"Yeah, we do," Peyton nods her head.

"I think Rob said Tyler is coming home too. I bet he's driving up with Jenny," Nathan says. "You know, my mom is making a big dinner and Lucas and his family are coming over, why don't you guys have dinner with us too? My mom loves a houseful. And you know, having all of us together will definitely make this whole holiday without Haley and Brooke and Cooper a lot easier on the kids."

Peyton and Jake both nod and Jake says, "Okay, yeah…count us in. Thanks."

"Thank you." Nathan replies.

Someone's phone rings an unfamiliar ring and they all check their cells. Lucas stares at his strangely.

"Who is it?" Nathan wonders.

"I don't know…it says out of area."

"Well, you don't get those often," Peyton says. "See who it is."

Lucas flips open is phone and holds it up to his ear.

"Hello?"

_**At the other end, Brooke sighs with relief and tears rolling off her cheek as she holds Haley's hand and she says, "Lucas?"**_

His heart stops…at least that's what it feels like to him when he hears that voice.

"Brooke?" He says into the phone and his friends and brother move closer to him.

_**Brooke smiles as the tears continue. She is so happy to hear his voice, and even happier to have him recognize hers.**_

"Oh my god…Brooke is that you?"

"_**Yeah, Luke…it's me."**_

He can feel his eyes swell with tears as he speaks back to her. "Oh my god…baby, are you okay? Are Haley and Coop okay? Where are you?"

"Are you serious?" Nathan says in shock from listening to his brother's conversation. "Is it really them?"

Lucas holds a hand up to silence his brother, wanting him to be quiet so he can hear Brooke.

"_**I'm okay, Luke…we're all okay."**_

"You're not hurt? Dan hasn't hurt you? And the baby…are you and the baby okay?"

_**Again, Brooke smiles as she lays a hand on her stomach and answers, "Yeah, we're fine. What about you, and the girls? Are the girls okay?"**_

"Yeah, yeah, the girls are fine. Brooke…"

"Ask her where they are," Nathan says. "Is Haley okay? Is Cooper okay? And the baby?"

"_**Brooke," Haley says, passing Henry to Cooper. "You need to tell him where we are before the phone loses power."**_

_**Brooke nods and says, "Luke, listen…I don't know how much time we have to talk. This phone we have could die or cut out any minute and I want Haley to be able to talk to Nathan."**_

"Okay, well Nathan is right here with me," Lucas says, sitting on the couch. His brother, Peyton and Jake move over to sit next to him as Karen and Keith rush over from the counter after seeing his fast moves and expressions when he answered the call. "We're all at the café."

"_**He is?" Brooke looks up at Haley and says, "Nathan's with him."**_

_**Haley smiles.**_

"Brooke, do you have any idea where Dan took you? Do you know where you are right now?"

"_**We're sure we are somewhere in Canada."**_

"Canada? Where in Canada?"

"_**We don't know…somewhere…in an old house in what feels like the middle of nowhere."**_

"Okay…well, we can at least work with that."

"Is Haley okay?" Nathan asks again. "Are they all okay?"

"_**Tell him they're okay," Brooke says, hearing her brother-in-law. "And I'll put her on so she can talk too."**_

"Okay, but—"

"_**I'm okay, Luke. You can rest easy now…I'm okay."**_

"No, I can't…not until you're home."

_**Brooke smiles, "I love you, Lucas."**_

"I love you too, baby…with all my heart."

Lucas passes the phone to his brother, "She's putting Haley on, but they don't know how long the phone will hold out."

"_**Nathan's dying to talk to you," Brooke says as she passes the phone to Haley.**_

Nathan takes his brother's phone as Haley takes the phone from Brooke.

"Haley?"

"_**Oh my god, Nathan!" Haley says when she hears his voice. She breaks down, not even trying to hold back her tears.**_

"Oh baby…" Nathan responds, letting his emotions run haywire too, "I miss you so much. Are you okay?"

"_**Yeah, baby, I'm fine…we're all fine. We are all looking out for each other."**_

"The baby…is he…"

"_**He's okay too," Haley looks over at her baby in her oldest son's arms. "Nathan Henry Scott is happy and healthy from what we can see, and he is beautiful and every bit his father's baby boy."**_

Nathan smiles, "Henry? Henry….i can't wait to finally see him and have all of you home again. What about Cooper? He's not hurt is he? Dan didn't…"

"_**Almost…when he took us, but he didn't…Cooper's okay. He's watching out for us, protecting us…you'd be proud of him."**_

"I am proud of him."

"_**Nathan, is Chloe okay?" Haley asks, still so scared for her baby girl. "I heard her screaming inside the van, but I couldn't help her, and I…is she okay?"**_

Nathan hesitates, "She's not hurt, Haley."

_**She can hear that worry in his voice and from his hesitation and she says, "But she's not okay, is she?"**_

"No," he finally answers. "She's still traumatized and in shock from what she saw, but she will be okay when you're home. We'll all be okay when you're home."

BEEP…_**BEEP…**_BEEP…**BEEP**

"What was that?" Nathan asks, growing fearful again.

"_**Damn it," Haley responds. "The phone…I think it's dying. We don't have much time left."**_

"No…we have to keep talking. I can't let go of you again. I need to know where you are."

"_**Somewhere in Canada…that's all we know. Nathan, the phone is about to die. Please give James and the girls the biggest hugs for me, and an extra one for Katie on her birthday."**_

"What? Haley, I…I can't hear you…you're breaking up."

"_**I love you, Nathan," Haley says only a few seconds before she loses contact with him.**_

"Haley…Haley!"

"What happened?" Peyton asks as they all gather around Nathan again.

Nathan lowers the phone from his ear, looks at them and says, "The phone, their phone…it died."

"At least they got a hold of you," Keith says. "Now you know they're okay."

"No," Lucas says, shaking his head, "we know they're not hurt."

Nathan, thinking the same as his brother, adds, "They won't be okay until they're out of there."

"Out of where?" Peyton asks. "Where are they?"

"Some where in Canada," Lucas answers.

"Nothing more specific?" Karen wonders.

"No," Nathan says. "But it's a hell of a lot more than we had ten minutes ago."

"_Thank god for that." Lucas says. "Thank god for that."_


	23. Chapter 21: Hold On

**_a/n: this is where the drama really takes off guys...i think you'll notice at the end of the chapter how different this is from my usual work, but i really hope yu like it...i spent 2 hours on it!! Please review_**

**_WARNING: This chapter contains language and actions not suitable for children under the age of 13. _**

**Twenty-One: **_Hold On_

Deb opens the back door and enters her home with Chloe on her hip and a big duffel bad on her shoulder. James and Katie follow her inside with their bulging book bags.

"Okay," Deb says as she sets Chloe down. "You guys want a snack before homework?"

"Yes, please." Katie agrees and she takes Chloe's hand and follows her brother and grandmother into the kitchen.

"I made some fresh cookies while you two were at school," Deb says when she brings the snack to the table where the kids are sitting. "Chloe helped, didn't you?"

Deb smiles at her youngest granddaughter, who looks up at her before taking a drink of milk from her plastic cup.

"Grandma," Katie says, taking a cookie when Deb offers one. "Is dad gonna stay the night here too when he's done working?"

"I don't think so, honey," Deb replies as she sits down next to her with another glass of milk for herself. "He'll probably come over for dinner when grandpa Rob does, but then they'll both go back to work. And you guys will be staying for a few days so I can take care of you while he works."

"But why is he gonna be working so much now?"

"Because he's trying to find mom, remember?" James answers his sister. "Remember dad telling us on your birthday last week that they know where mom is?"

Katie nods and James continues, "Well, that's why he's working so much now…he's trying to do everything to find them, and he will. You believe that, right?"

"Yes. But I just wish I could help too."

Since getting the call from Brooke and Haley, Nathan, Lucas and Rob have been working even harder together with the entire police force and FBI.

"So we've done all we can here then, right?" Lucas asks his brother and Rob as they sit together in Rob's office.

"Right," Rob says leaning back in his desk chair. "We've got authorities in all the other states at work, the FBI, the media…"

"What about in Canada?" Nathan asks. "Have we made the contact with Canadian polic forces and media?"

"Yes," Rob says. "The FBI knows everything we know and we have to let them handle everything in Canada until we know something more from them."

"In other words," Lucas begins, "they don't want us going up there looking for them until they find them?"

Rob nods again.

"Well, what happens when all this information is released there and Dan hears or sees it? He will run…he will try to take them further away. He tried to with James."

"Yes, but there is a difference this time."

"How?" Lucas wonders. "What's different?"

"If he runs, if he tries to escape…sooner or later, he will have to cross that border." Rob leans forward at his desk again and finishes, "And that's where we catch him."

_Thanksgiving this year was not like I wanted it to be…_

Dan stands alone with his thoughts in the kitchen as he prepares himself a turkey sand which, a leftover meal for himself from the turkey he froze after cooking last week.

_They sat down with me and they ate some of the food I prepared…but they were quiet throughout the entire meal…all of them. I don't get it…I've done everything I can to try to make this a home and a family for them. What more could they want?_

"To go home," Dan answers himself as he stands in a trance.

_Well, that's definitely never happening._

"Never," he repeats out loud as he moves his plate to a tray and carries it out of the kitchen to the living room.

He sits down on the couch and pulls the tray to him. He turns on the television in the corner with the remote. He picks up his fork and knife to start in on his meal. As he begins to cut a piece of the gravy soaked sand which, his focus is stolen by what he sees and hears on the television.

"_**The Ontario Provincal Polic, as well as other authorities throughout the country, are now searching for six people and their kidnapper, all from the United States. The OPP are working with the FBI to help locate Dan Scott, who kidnapped his sons' wives, two children and a doctor from Georgia just five months ago.**_

"_**Police from all over the States have been searching for them without any knowledge of where they were taken, and with absolutely no leads…until last week. They received a phone call, the contents of which have not been disclosed, other than the fact that it led them to believe that the captor has them hostage somewhere in Canada. Authorities will continue searching everywhere and anywhere until they are found, putting additional security on the Canadian border. If you have any information or have seen any of the people pictured, we ask that you please contact your local authorities immediately."**_

Dan stares at the television blankly as their pictures are brought up on the screen.

_No…no…this can't be happening. They're not supposed to be found…no one is supposed to find out where we are. How can they…_

"Son of a bitch," he says, growing angrier as he realizes what's happened. He flips his try in anger, sending everything on it to the floor as he stands up and shouts, "Dager!"

It's not long before Marcus appears in the living room, along with Cooper, Brooke and Haley, holding Henry. All of them are worried about the expression on Dan's face and the anger in his voice.

"How'd you do it?" He asks angrily.

"Do what?" Marcus answers innocently, but nervously too.

"Don't play dumb with me! I know it was you. Police here are involved now…it's all over the news stations here. Someone made a call, and I know it was you. How did you do it? Where's the phone?"

No one answers as they look around at each other.

"Where is it?!" Dan shouts again.

"It's downstairs," Marcus answers finally. "But it doesn't work anymore. It died after we made the call."

Dan nods and says, "so that's why you've all been so nice to each other…I should've figure it out. You were all planning it out, trying to find your ticket out of here?"

He looks at all of them, keeping his eyes for a moment on Henry, asleep against Haley's chest. He looks back at them all and continues, "Well, you know what? They aren't going to find us here."

"So you're going to try running with us again?" Brooke asks.

"Oh no…" Dan replies. "They'd catch me if I tried that. No…you're all staying right here. And whatever food and such is here is all you have left. You are never leaving this house…but I am."

They all stare at him, watching him look and sound more and more psychotic. And what he demands next shocks them and scares them all.

"And I'm taking him with me."

Dan points to the sleeping infant and Haley steps back, clutching her son closer to her body as he wakes and begins to cry.

"No…" she responds pleadingly. "You're not…you're not taking him."

"Yes I am," Dan says moving closer slowly as the others form a wall around Haley and the baby, protecting them.

Dan stops and says, "And you're going to hand him over to me without a fight."

"No," Haley shakes her head. "I won't. He's mine."

Dan reaches under his shirt and from the back of his pants, he pulls out his gun, cocks it and points at the group. They draw their breaths.

"Oh my god…" Brooke responds, holding her stomach in fear.

"You are going to bring him over here and put him on the floor, or I'm going to start shooting to kill…possible even him."

"Please…don't…" Haley please, more and more tears falling down her face.

"You've got ten seconds before I pull this trigger."

Haley starts moving slowly to the middle of the living room as she cries. She kisses her screaming son's head before putting him down. She walks back over to the group and Brooke quickly holds her as they both cry. Dan lowers the gun and begins moving to the baby.

_I can't let this happen…_Cooper panics in his mind. _I'm supposed to protect him, all of them…he's not taking another brother._

Marcus tries to stop him, to pull him back, but it's too late.

"Cooper, no!" Brooke and Haley scream as Cooper leaps onto Dan's back.

"You leave him alone, you son of a bitch!" He pulls back on Dan's head and scratches his face before he can reach Henry on the floor.

"Damn it!" Dan shouts in pain as he throws Cooper off of him and landing him on the floor.

He turns and looks at him, out of breath and he says, "I warned you, boy…"

He looks over and sees it there, on the floor by the couch, so he reaches down, picks up the knife and quickly plunges it into Cooper's right side and pulls it back out just as quickly.

"Cooper!" Haley screams, rushing to his side on the floor. "Oh my god, Cooper!!"

"I warned you all what the consequences would be if you didn't cooperate and listen to me. Now he pays the price."

Dan picks Henry up from the floor and runs out of the house.

Brooke and Marcus are quickly down at Cooper's die too as Haley holds his head in her lap, with blood on her hands from touching his wound.

"Stay with me, baby," she cries.

"Mom…" Cooper utters in pain.

"Okay," Marcus says after quickly examining the injury. "We need to apply pressure to the wound before he loses too much blood. Brooke, help me get some things…we need towels, blankets, the first aid kit from the bathroom…whatever you can find…hurry!"

"You have to hold on baby, " Haley says to her son as the other two begin their search for supplies. She runs a hand over his head, his soft, short hair which she had just cut per his request an hour ago. "We're going to help you, we're going to make you better, but you have to hold on."

"Mom…" Cooper struggles for his breaths. "I…I love…you."

Haley cries harder.

"Damn it, Cooper! Don't do that to me! You stay awake, you stay with me! Don't you dare die on me!! I'm right here with you, okay? I'm not going anywhere…and neither are you. You stay with me…you hear me? Please, Cooper…don't leave me. I love you, baby…you have to stay with me. So just hold on…just hold on…"


	24. Chapter 22: End of the Line

**_a/n: i know you all have been waiting so badly for this...you're anxious to see what happens, so i just want to say this...i appreciated and loved every single review i recived on all the chapters, especially the last one. i loved al lthe reactions and everything everyone had to say. thanks so much you guys...you really make me feel like my writing is good. and also, please excuse any mistakes in this or anything that doesn't seem realistic...i was just writing with what knowledge i have about canada and such, so it's probly not really realisitc, but it got my plot for this chapter going. so enjoy and please review!_**

**Chapter Twenty-Two: **_End of the Line_

_How can everything have gone so wrong? I had it all worked out so perfectly. It was working…nobody had any idea where we were. And now the whole plan is ruined._

Dan glances at Henry, finally quiet and asleep in the car seat in the passenger seat next to him.

_So I guess it's plan B now. They didn't want to be my family, than that's just fine. I will make Henry my family. I'll go where no one can find us for sure and I'll raise him as my own. He'll never know about his real parents. _

"Oh shit!" He says after a few minutes of staring out the windshield at the road.

_Damn border control…and even more police…U.S. police too, I'm guessing. How did I forget about them? Of course they're going to put added security along the border to trap me inside. But it'll be okay…I won't give anything up…I can work this out…I can get past them._

Dan slows the van as an officer stands in his way from moving forward. The police cars are parked along the border so that only one vehicle may get through at a time, once they've been cleared to pass. Once he stops the car, Dan rolls down his window as the officer walks to his side.

"Good evening officers," he says casually. "How are you?"

"Fine," the officer replies with a stiff expression. He glances at the infant fastened into a car seat, which is strapped into the front passenger seat…_completely unsafe for such a young infant. _

He wonders if this is the man they're looking for. They have received only pictures of the hostages, not of the kidnapper. Of him, they have only a description. And looking at this man in the car, the description seems to fit. Yet, he only has an infant with him…_unless he's hiding the others in the back._

"Do you have anyone else traveling with you in the back?" He asks.

Dan shakes his head and answers, "Nope…it's just me and my son, heading back to Michigan. I brought little Danny up here last week to meet his grandparents."

_Well, he's got a story…But is it true, because it still doesn't sound believable to me. Well, just go with it for a few more questions, Mike… _he tells himself.

"Okay, well in order to cross the border, we need to see both your birth certificate and your son's."

_Damn, _Dan thinks. _I have mine, but I don't have one for him._

"Sure," he replies anyway. He pulls down the visor above him an starts to look through the papers, pretending to search for birth certificates.

"Is there a problem, sir?" The cop asks after a few minutes.

"Yeah…it seems I may have left the documents at my parent's place."

"Well, you see, now that's a problem," the cop says, realizing this man has to be exactly the man they're looking for. "I'm afraid we can't let you cross the border without those documents. It's law."

"I understand," Dan says, trying desperately to think of another way out. "Well, I can just turn back around, head back for it and—"

"No, I'm sorry, we can't let you leave."

The cop motions other officers to come over. "You're going to have to come with us, sir."

_No…no…I can't let this happen, not again. I can't let them catch me, not again._

Seeing the rest of the officers approach the van, Dan panics and decides the only thing left to do, his only way out now is to run. He quickly opens the door with all his might, taking the cop standing in front of it by surprise and knocking him to the ground. Dan runs from the van, away from the cops as more and more of them chase him down the street, shouting orders to each other.

_Faster…faster…just keep running and I can escape. There's no way in hell I'm going to let them catch—_

"Ugh!" Dan grunts as he hits the ground

They've tackled him. It's the end of the line.

"Is he going to be okay?" Haley asks Marcus as she sits holding her son's hand as he lay unconscious on the bigger bed in the downstairs bedroom.

After Marcus treated Cooper's wound, he and Haley moved him to the bed there to make him as comfortable as possible in the situation. Now, all three of them are sitting by his side, stricken with worry and guilt.

"He's lost a lot of blood," Marcus answers, moving his hands from his face. "It's a very deep, serious wound and I'm not sure what the internal damage may be."

Haley stares at him and asks again, "Is he going to be okay?"

"I don't know," Marcus answers after a moment and Haley begins crying again. "He needs a lot of medical attention, possibly even surgery and the sooner he gets it, the better his chances will be."

"So what are we going to do?" Brooke ask, sitting on the opposite side of Cooper as Haley sits on the left side.

"Well, I think I'm going to try and see if I can get that phone to charge again, but I don't know if I can."

"What good will that do him if it does?" Haley asks angrily. "We have no idea where the hell we are!"

"I know…but I don't know what else to do. There's nothing more I can do for him now but try to make contact with someone."

Haley rolls her eyes and looks back at her son again.

_He's so innocent, so helpless…my baby boy. How can he be laying here so hurt? How couldi have let this happen? Why didn't I protect him? You didn't deserve this, Coop…all you did was try to protect us. I don't know what I'll do if you're not okay._

**A FEW DAYS LATER…**

"That was an excellent dinner, Mom," Nathan says, leaning back as his mother takes his plate.

"Thank you, honey," Deb replies, carrying three plates to the sink at the counter. "I'm glad you enjoyed it."

"I'll get that," Rob says, standing up when they hear the phone ring.

He stands up and heads for the living room to take the call where it's quiet.

"I thought it was good too, grandma!" Katie says, sitting at the table next to her father. "Especially since you were finally here to eat dinner with us, Dad."

Nathan smiles at her and pulls her into a hug as the doorbell rings.

"I got it!" James hollers from the hall.

"Thank you!" Deb hollers back with a smile. She loves having a house full of voices…her family's voices.

"Dad, do you think you can read me and Chloe a story before bed?" Katie asks.

"I would love to," Nathan says with a smile, touching his daughter's cheek.

"Uncle Luke's here," James says as he enters the kitchen with Lucas.

"Hey guys," Lucas greets.

"Hey Luke," Nathan says.

"How was dinner?" Deb asks him as she loads dishes into the dishwasher.

"It was excellent," Lucas answers with a sigh. "It was really nice finally getting tp sit down with my girls, Kelsey, mom and Keith for a big family dinner. And the girls were really happy to have me give them their baths and put them to bed…I haven't gotten home in time to do that for a few days."

Nathan nods and quickly says, "Speaking of bed…you two should be getting ready too. It's a school night."

"But what about the story, Dad?" Katie asks.

"Get cleaned up and in your pajamas first, and then I'll read to you. Don't wake Chloe if she's asleep though."

"Okay," Katie says before kissing his cheek and running upstairs.

"James, I want you in bed by 10:00, okay?"

James nods and begins walking for the living room. Rob bumps into him as he rushes back into the kitchen.

"Sorry, buddy," he says and moves over to the table.

"Honey, what's wrong?" Deb asks with concern after witnessing his quick entrance.

Lucas and Nathan stare at him curiously too, Nathan now standing next to his brother at the counter.

"That was the station on the phone," Rob begins. "They got a call from Detective Owens, the detective working with FBI. And, um…he, um…"

Rob is trying to get the words out faster than he can catch his breath.

"What? What'd he say?" Lucas asks, he and Nathan growing impatient.

"Did they find them?" Nathan asks with hope.

"Well…yes and no. Haley, Brooke and Cooper are still missing, they're still looking for them, but the Ontario Provincal Police and the police stationed at the border caught him and arrested him when he tried to cross the border. He tried to run, but they caught him before he could. "

"You're kidding?" Nathan responds in relief as well as disbelief.

"This is a dream, right?" Lucas says, his heart beating faster and faster as he looks at the others.

"Nope, they have him, he's in custody." Rob grins and continues. "There's more…he had the baby with him, Nate. I guess he was trying to run with him, but he ran in the wrong direction, right into the trap and now they're holding him and your son is safe."

Nathan feels the tears well up in his eyes as he says, "Henry? They found my son…they really found him? Is he okay?"

"Well, he was checked out by the police and then the doctors in Ohio, and they all said he's fine."

"Ohio?" Lucas says.

"Yeah, um...they kept Dan in a jail in Canada for a few days, waiting for some direction, for someone here to bring him back. Detective Owens was in Ohio when he got the call, so he went up with back up and brought him back there, and eventually, soon he'll be brought hear for his trial. And Henry is with social services up there too. He'll be staying with a foster family there until we get up there to pick him up."

"Oh my god!" Nathan says with a smile as he hugs his mother.

Rob goes to the closet to get his coat as Nathan turns and hugs his brother. After their hug, Nathan lets his smile fade as he notices the sullen expression upon Lucas's face. He touches his shoulder and offers some comforting words, like Lucas has done so many times for him, "Hey Luke…don't give up yet. We're going to find Brooke, okay? And Haley and Cooper too. We're going to bring them all home. We're one step closer now."

Lucas nods and Nathan puts on his coat from off the chair where he'd just been sitting.

"I'll call you as soon as we get there," Rob promises Deb before kissing her lips.

"Okay," Deb replies as Lucas steps outside with his cell phone to call his mother and let her know what's going on.

"Are we taking one car?" Nathan asks, grabbing his cell, wallet and keys from the table.

"Doesn't matter," Rob replies. "I'm taking my car and you can come with me or Luke."

"I think I'll ride with Luke in his truck and we'll just follow you. WE ca ncall if we get lost."

"Fine with me," Rob says as they both head for the door.

"Dad?" Nathan turns at his son's voice. James walks closer to him. Nathan stares at him, afraid he is angry at him again for not running to tell him first before he leaves. He had to have heard their conversation.

"Yeah, Jamee?"

James throws his arms around him and Nathan holds him in the hug as James says, "Be careful, okay?"

Nathan smiles, pulls out of the hug and says, "I will…I promise."

James smiles back. Nathan heads for the door again, but turns and says, "hey, do me a favor…read Katie double her usual story tonight. I promised I'd read her one, but…"

"Don't sweat it, Dad…I got it."

"Thanks, Sport. I'll call you."

And finally he is out the door. And within a minute, he, Lucas and Rob are in their cars and on the road to Ohio, more than ready for a confrontation with Dan, and more for Nathan…the meet with his son.


	25. Chapter 23: Interrogation

**_a/n: okay...this is kind of a short chapter, but it's a chapter. there might be more short chapters as we near the end of the story, but that just means you'll get updates more often, so everyone can look forward to that. Please Review!!! and i hope you enjoy!!!_**

**Chapter Twenty-Three: **_Interrogation_

"I'm going to ask you one more time, Dan," Detective Riley Owens asks him in the interrogation room. "Where are the others?"

"The others?" Dan replies innocently. "I have no idea who you're talking about."

"Come on…" Detective Owens says annoyed. "We've already been through this with you several times since we picked you up. You know exactly who I'm talking about. Brooke, Haley and Cooper Scott…"

He lays out photographs of them.

"You kidnapped them from a bank in Tree Hill, North Carolina over five months ago. And you had Haley's baby with you, so you must know where his mother is."

Dan nods, "You're right…I do know. But I also know my rights and I don't have to tell you anything. I think I'll plead the fifth."

"You can't! Not on this! You're withholding vital information from the police, and that's a crime too…piling right on top of the kidnapping and child endangerment charges you're already facing."

"Well, you know…I don't think I'm quite ready to talk."

Detective Owens nods and says, "Fine. We'll just wait until your sons arrive. I know they have more than a few words and questions for you. And maybe, if you have kind of a soul left, after you see how much pain they're in, you'll feel sympathy enough to finally give in."

"Don't count on it," Dan mumbles, watching the detective leave the room.

"This is all my fault," Haley admits out loud to Brooke as they sit together against the wall on the smaller bed, both unable to sleep.

Brooke looks at her and replies, "Haley…don't do that to yourself. This is not your fault."

"But it is, Brooke," Haley argues. "I should've done something to stop Dan from hurting him and from taking Henry, but I didn't. I just stood there…I'm the worst mother in the world."

"No, you're not." Brooke takes Haley's hand and continues, "You are a great mother. You tried to protect them as best you could. You tried to keep Dan from taking Henry until he threatened his life. If you hadn't let him go when you did, Dan may have shot and killed him…and you."

"But he stabbed Cooper. Why couldn't I have stopped that?"

"Because that boy is every bit his father. From the day he was born, Cooper has always been so much like Nathan, even more now as he gets older. We've all seen it in him. His personality is almost identical to Nathan's and his attitude and behavior are completely identical to Nathan's at his age.

"He's got a lot of fight in him, Hales. And he's got a lot of love too. That's what made him jump on Dan's back. He wanted to protect you and his brother, just like his father would. And Dan stabbing him happened all too quick for anyone to stop. But he'll be okay…just like his father too. Nathan made it through that horrible accident when no one thought he would, so I know Cooper will survive this."

Tears sliding down her cheek, Haley says, "He has too, Brooke…he has to be okay. He's my little boy."

"I know, honey," Brooke says pulling her into a tight hug, "I know."

They hold their hug for a few minutes, until they hear groaning from the other bed.

"Mom…"

"He's waking up," Brooke says and Haley looks at her. "That's the second sign he'll be okay."

Haley smiles before rushing back over to her boy's side.

"What are you going to say to him when we see him?"

Nathan looks back at his brother in the driver's seat and replies, "I don't know. I was kind of just thinking about beating the hell out of him until he tells us where Haley, Brooke and Cooper are."

"Funny…" Lucas says, glancing at Nathan for a second. "I was thinking of doing the same thing. "

Nathan smiles and says, "Well, I guess we've got a few more hours to decide what we're going to say."

_How did I end up here…alone in a jail cell? How did it all go so wrong? I had it all worked out so perfectly and now…_

"I guess I'll have to do better next time," Dan tells himself, laying on the cot in his jail cell, wearing an orange jumpsuit.

_Next time? Who're you kidding? There's not gonna be a next time, Danny. You blew it…your looking at life in prison with all the felonies you've racked up._

"No, I won't," Dan argues with himself. "I'll find a way, a loophole. I'll play it crazy…the mentally ill card. Yeah…I'll make the judge believe I didn't know what I was doing, I'll—"

_Don't kid yourself…that'll never work. Your life is over. Besides, you don't have to play crazy…you ARE crazy/_

"Shut the hell help!" Dan shouts. "I'm not crazy!"

_Then…why are you talking to yourself?_

"Okay, Mr. Scott…" the guard says as he unlocks the cell door. Dan looks over at him. "Let's go."

"Where?"

"Upstairs," the guard answers as he slides the barred door open. "There's a few people waiting to have a few words with you."

The guard cuffs him and leads him out of the cell and up the stairs.


	26. Chapter 24:The Devil is His Loyal Friend

**_a/n: i'm on a roll with these chapters guys...i'm working really hard to finish this story before the new semester starts at school. pls, i really want to get started on the sequel LOL. so i hope u enjoy this (WARNING: strong language inside) and please let me know what you think of the chapter itse;f and also if the title i chose for the chapter fits. thanks!_**

**Chapter Twenty-Four: **_The Devil is His Loyal Friend_

"Rob Stevens?"

Rob, Nathan and Lucas all turn when they hear Rob's name called out. They've been waiting only a few minutes upon arriving at the police department in Perrysburg, Ohio, for the detective to meet them.

"Yeah?" Rob answers to his name as the detective walks up to him, holding out his hand.

"I'm Riley Owens." He shakes his hand. "I'm glad to finally meet you in person."

"Yeah, same here."

Detective Owens looks over at Nathan and Lucas, standing together exhausted but determined.

"And you must be Nathan and Lucas?"

Both nod as they accept his handshake.

"The guard is bringing Dan up to the interrogation room now, so we'll be able to go in a few minutes. I know you're all anxious to have a few words with him and figure out where he's keeping your family. But…I can tell you right no, getting that information out of him is not going to be easy. He's already avoided the questions as best he can."

"Well, how's the search going?" Lucas asks. "Do you have any other leads that might help?"

"Unfortunately, no. But it's been my experience in past situations that when people are taken as hostages, they're usually taken somewhere small with not a lot of people. So we're looking in the smaller areas. What doesn't help though, is Canada is made up of small towns."

Nathan and Lucas look away.

"I'm going to head back up there tomorrow afternoon to help with the search. I would still be up there now, but I wanted to meet you all and try to get something from Dan."

"You're all set, Owens," an officer says when he passes him.

"Okay, thanks John." Riley looks back at them and says, "You guys ready?"

"Hell yeah," Nathan says. "We've been waiting and ready for this for five months."

"Okay…this way then."

Detective Owens turns and walks away with Rob, Nathan and Lucas following vlose behind.

"You just rest, baby…" Haley says to Cooper as she runs a hand through his hair. "Get some more sleep. You need your strength."

Brooke enters the bedroom again and walks over to Haley and the bed.

"How's he doing?" Brooke asks as Haley stands up.

"Not good, Brooke. Staying awake is getting harder and lasting a short time whenever he does wake up. We need to get him to a hospital. Is Marcus having any luck with that phone?"

"I don't know, he—whoa…" Brooke touches her stomach.

Haley looks at her with concern and says, "What? Are you okay?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. This baby just likes to catch me by surprise with his kicks. I never expect it."

"Well, you need to sit down anyway," haley says, ushering Brooke to the bed. "Yopu've been on your feet way too much."

"Haley, don't worry about me…I'll be fine."

"not if you don't take it easy, honey. You have to be careful under this stressful situation…trust me, I know. So just sit down and rest so I can rest too."

Brooke smiles and sits down with Haley.

"Normally we only allow the officers inside," detective Owens explains as they stand outside the interrogation room. "But considering the circumstances, and me being in the authoritative position that I am in this case, I'm going to allow all three of you inside."

Nathan and Lucas nod their thank you.

"And I know it'll be very hard for you to do, but I need to ask that you both stop yourselves from attacking him."

"You can't be serious," Lucas responds. "You expect us to go in there and sit back quietly after what he's done to us?"

"Of course not. You can say anything and everything you want to say to him…you just can't hit him. Do you think you can hold yourselves back from that?"

The brothers glance at each other. They look back at detective Owens and Nathan answers, "Yeah…let's just do this."

Detective Owens opens the door and all of them enter the room and find Dan sitting at the table, waiting for them. Dan watches them as they enter. Nathan and Lucas glare at him as they stand before him, with only the table between them.

_Boy, are they pissed, _Dan thinks as they all stare at him in silence. _Good…now they know how it feels._

"Hello, boys," he says to them, finally breaking the silence. "Long time no see."

"Don't," Nathan says angrily. "Don't you dare speak to us unless we speak to you first, you got it?"

"Sure."

"Let's cut to the chase, Dan," Detective Owens says, moving over to the table. "We're tired and sick of dealing with you here."

"Alright, then let's get this over with," Dan replies with a sigh.

"Well, it can be as quick as you want, Mr. Scott," Detective Owens says. "All you have to do is tell us where you're keeping the others."

"Oh…I'm afraid I can't answer that. You see…I don't know that answer. Can we try another question?"

"You lying, evil son of a bitch!" Lucas shouts angrily, slamming his fists down on the table. "You know where they are! You put them there. So where the hell are they? Where is my wife?"

Dan grins, happy to have gotten this reaction from him.

"Well…" he replies. "Let's just say she's in a better place."

Lucas stares at him with shock and anger all in the same expression.

"What the hell does that mean?"

"Just what it sound like…they're all in a better place now."

"You're full of it," Nathan says, stepping up next to his brother. "They're not dead."

"Well, you're right…Brooke and Haley aren't, but I'm assuming Cooper's about ready to let go."

Now Nathan stares at him with the same angry expression as his brother.

"Why? What did you do to him? What did you do to my son?"

"I don't think you really want to know that, Nathan. Knowing the truth, knowing what happened will just make it harder for you at the funeral if you ever find them."

The anger has built up in him too much now. And the thought that Dan has hurt, possibly killed his son, is the last straw. He can't hold it in anymore, nor does he want to. Every bit of anger, pain and fear inhibiting him is released through one fistful of rage straight into Dan's face. He tries to move over to him, so he can release more and let all his anger go, but two other bodies are holding him back.

"God damn you, you son of a bitch!" He says as Rob and detective Owens pull on him, trying to get him to the door. "I'll kill you! If you hurt him, if you hurt any of them, I swear to god I'll kill you!!"

"Nathan!" Rob says sternly, pulling on his stepson's shoulder's as Detective Owens opens the door. "Come on, Nathan!"

"I'll kill you!" Nathan continues shouting as Rob and the detective pull him out of the room.

After watching his brother beat up his father, Lucas walks over and closes the door. Dan pulls himself back onto the chair and wipes blood from his nose and his lip.

"How'd you get to be so evil?" Lucas asks, putting his hands in his pockets as he paces the room.

Dan smirks again and replies, "Well, the devil is my only loyal friend."

"Why don't you just tell us where they are? I mean, there's no escaping now, No one is going to let you out of their sight, and you know that. So why won't you just tell us?"

"Because then it wouldn't be fun anymore. I would have nothing left to torture you with anymore, nothing left to make you suffer."

Lucas shakes his head and he says, "Well ,you know what…it doesn't matter anymore whether you tell us or not. We're still going to find them. It may be harder, but we're not going to give up."

He lays his hands on the table and brings his face only inches closer to Dan's and he says, "We're going to find them before this year is through. And I promise…if you've hurt them, any of them…you won't have just a bloody broken nose anymore because they'll be carrying you out of your cell in a body bag."

Lucas walks away and slams the door closed after he leaves the room.

"I'm sorry," Nathan says to Detective Owens, sitting in his office in a chair next to Rob's. "I know I told you I wouldn't hit him, but I lost control. Thinking that he hurt Cooper, that he may have killed him, it just…"

"It's okay," Detective Owens says with a sigh. "I understand. I would've done the same thing if my wife and child were involved."

The door to the office opens and Lucas enters.

"Hey," he says as he closes the door behind him.

"Did you get anything out of him?" Rob asks him as he plops down in an empty chair,

"Nope…and I didn't really expect to. I just wanted to say to him what I needed to say and of course, watch Nathan beat the shit out of him."

Nathan smiles with his brother.

"Anyway," Lucas continues, " now that we've done all that, I don't want to ever see him again, not until I see him finally behind bars for good."

Nathan looks back at detective Owens and says, "So, um…where's Henry? When can I see him and take him home?"

Detective Owens leans forward in his desk and answers, "He is with a very wonderful foster family about ten minutes away from here. I called them this afternoon and informed them you were on your way up to get him, so we can head over there tomorrow morning."

Nathan nods and says, "Okay, thanks. I appreciate everything you've done for us."

"Well, I'm glad we were finally able to help."

"Well, Nate," Rob says standing up. "Maybe we should get going and find somewhere to crash for the night."

"Yeah…"

"Oh, don't even worry about it," Owens says as he stands up too. "There's a room waiting for you at the Holiday Inn down the street. My brother-in-law manages the hotel, so he's set you up with a good room, complete with two big comfy beds and a couch bed too. And there's a free continental breakfast in the morning."

"Really?" Rob says. "Thanks, Riley."

"Oh, it's no problem. You deserve it, all of you after everything you've been through. So go on…go get some sleep, have a good breakfast and I'll see you back here in the morning."

"Thanks."


	27. Author's Note Shout Outs !

A/n: okay…I loved all the reviews I got on this chapter, so I just really needed to post something so I could respond to all of you, especially those of you had specific things to mention.

**_Deli41321: thank you so much for your thoughts. I love all your long reviews. I know you are really going to love the next chapter because you will finally get to see Nathan meet his baby boy._**

**_Jeytonbrucasnaley: your reviews always make me laugh. Thanks so much. You too will love the next chapter._**

**_Courtneylovejason: I love your reviews too…you always have so much to say. I know you will definitely love the next chapter. Nathan finally meets henry…I had to wait uhntil just the right moment to get that in the story, and it has finally come (oh, and Haley did cut his hair already. Remember? I mentioned it in the chapter right after dan stabbed him, at least I hope I did…)_**

And to all my other reviewers….you know I LOVE ALL OF YOUR REVIEWS I just wanted to answer some questions to the reviewers who had some. I am so greatful to have so many readersand reviewers. Thank you all. And you can expect an update very soon (I'm going to try to get it up tomorrow or Tuesday, all depending on my homework load. I have it all written, I just have to type it) so be patient because GOOD THINGS COME TO THOSE WHO WAIT…(hmm…maybe I can use that for a chapter title…LOL update soon I promise!!!)


	28. Chapter 25: Long Way to Go

**Chapter Twenty Five: **_Long Way to Go_

"Brooke…" Haley rubs her friend's shoulder as she sleeps on the couch in the living room. "Hey, Brooke…"

Brooke opens her eyes slowly.

"Hey," she says through a yawn as she stretches.

"Hey," Haley responds as Brooke sits up. "You've been asleep a long time. I just wanted to make sure you're okay."

"Yeah…I think I was just more tired than I thought." Brooke runs a hand through her hair. "What about you? Did you get any sleep?"

"A little bit…but not half of what you did. You know, you're still kind of pale. Are you sure you're feeling okay?"

"Yeah, I'm just…is it burning up in here, or is it just me?"

Haley touches her friend's forehead.

"Well, you are a little warm, but not warm enough for a fever. It's probably just another one of those crazy annoying pregnancy side effects."

Brooke returns a smile. Then, she asks, "So how is he today?"

Haley's smile fades and she replies, "Either the same or getting worse. He hasn't woken up since the one time he did yesterday."

Brooke takes her friend's hand and after a minute she asks, "So where's Marcus? Is he still working on the phone?"

"Yeah…he took a break to make breakfast and change Cooper's bandages, but now he's back at work. Only he's moved the work upstairs…I guess he thinks he might get better reception up there."

"Maybe he will and we can find out where the hell we are so someone can help us find our way out of here."

Even with being in a nice hotel in a warm, comfortable bed, Nathan still had a hard time getting to sleep. He was still stricken with worry over whether Cooper was really hurt and if he was, then how badly? Plus, he couldn't stop thinking about what it was going to be like, finally getting to hold his young son in his arms, to see him for the first time.

But he did fall asleep eventually and even slept for a good six hours. And after breakfast, he, Lucas and Rob checked out of the hotel and left to meet Detective Owens at the police station. From there, they are following Riley to the King's home…where baby Henry is being taken care of.

Lucas parks his truck behind Riley's patrol car, on the street in front of a tall, light blue house with a snow covered roof, and a blanket of snow in the yard. He and Nathan climb out of the truck and meet Rob and Riley on the shoveled sidewalk.

"So this is it," Riley says when they all meet. "This is the home of Kristin and Noah King, the most loving, kind, caring people I know. I guarantee your son has been very well taken care of here."

Nathan nods before they all walk up on the porch. Detective Owens rings the doorbell. A tall man with light brown hair opens the door.

"Hey Riley," he greets as he holds the door open for everyone.

"Hey Noah," Riley says as they enter. "It's good to see you."

"You too," Noah replies. "It's cold out there, huh?"

"Sure is." Riley looks at Rob, Nathan and Lucas and says, "Noah, this is Rob Stevens and Lucas and Nathan Scott."

"Nice to meet you," Nathan says when he shakes Noah's hand. "I appreciate you and your wife taking care of my son, keeping him safe."

"Oh, it was our pleasure. We love kids, and this is something we both have dreamt about. When Riley here called us and filled us in on the situation, we were more than happy to help. And your son is a very good baby…handsome too. He looks just like you."

Nathan smiles and Noah says, "Kristin should be down with him in just a minute. She's getting his things ready for you. He didn't have anything when we picked him up at the hospital, so we're giving you some of our son's old baby clothes and toys, and some diapers too, so she's getting all that together for you."

"Okay, thanks."

All of them look up the stairs when they hear a woman's voice.

"Sounds like some people are waiting to meet you, little one," they hear her say as she walks down each step.

Nathan swallows when he sees them, when he sees his son in her arms. And when he sees his little face, he just melts.

_Oh my god…_he thinks as he stares at him. _It's him, it's really him…my son, my little boy._

Kristin smiles at Nathan as she carries the baby over to him.

"He's so big," Nathan says, cracking a wider smile than he was wearing before as the baby boy focuses his eyes on him. "I can't believe it's him."

"He's beautiful," Kristin says. "He does look just like you."

She holds him out and Nathan slowly takes him. And as he pulls him against his body and leans his head against his, Nathan lets his tears finally go.

"Oh, Henry…" he cries. He kisses his son's soft, dark head.

Lucas, Rob and the others watch Nathan with smiles as he bonds with his son. Nathan sniffles and holds Henry on his hip to get a better look at that little face.

He chuckles and says, "Look at him, Luke…look how cute he is. It's like looking at Haley."

"Yeah, he's handsome," Lucas agrees. He touches his nephew's cheek and says, "Hey bud, I'm your uncle Lucas. I'm really happy to finally meet you."

"Look at those eyes," Nathan continues admiring his son's every feature. "He's got Haley's eyes…they're so intense, so bright and focused."

Nathan admires a few more minutes before realizing the others are still in the room.

"Sorry," he says, looking at Riley, Kristin and Noah. "I didn't mean to ignore everyone, I just…I've waited for this for a long time."

"Don't be sorry," Noah says with his arm around his wife's shoulder. " We understand. Is he your first?"

"No," Nathan smiles again. "I've got two more boys and two little girls."

"Oh, wow," Noah responds. "You've got a houseful."

"Yeah," Nathan chuckles.

"Well, here are his things," Kristin says, holding out a blue diaper bag. "There's some paperwork in there too, from the hospital where we picked him up. They started a birth certificate for him, but they didn't really have much to put on it, so they said just take it to a hospital back in your hometown and have them fill out the rest and document it. I guess that's something you and your wife can do together when she comes home."

Nathan nods and takes the bag.

"I guess we should get going then," he says. "It's a long drive back to Tree Hill and a lot of people are waiting to meet him.

"Yeah, and we've got a long drive up to Canada," Rob says, looking at Lucas and Riley.

"Right," Riley says. "We should get going too. We've got a lot of searching to do yet."

"All right," Noah says. "Oh, let me get the car seat for you, Nathan."

"Oh, thanks. That might help."

The others chuckle as Kristin helps Nathan bundle Henry up in a light blue baby snow suit. After they have him dressed, Nathan smiles at him again. He kisses his cheek as Noah returns with the car seat.

"Here, I'll take it," Luca says, taking the car seat, "I'll go get it buckled in for you, Nate."

"Thanks, Luke."

"Hey, put it in my car," Rob shouts to Lucas before he leaves. "Nathan can take my car back and I'll ride with you."

"Okay."

While Lucas leaves to get the car seat ready, Nathan, Rob and Riley say their goodbyes to the King's. Then they leave the house. Nathan fastens Henry into the car seat in the back of Rob's silver Sudan.

"Okay," he says when he's finished. "You're all set buddy."

He touches his head, covered by the hood of the coat. He smiles as his son kicks his little feet and moves his arms all around happily as he makes baby noises.

"I guess he's excited to finally be going home," Rob says as Nathan stands up.

"Yeah…I'm definitely ready. Listen, you guys, um…you'll let me know the moment you know anything, okay?"

"Promise," Lucas says before going in for a hug with his brother.

"Give your mom a big hug for me, okay?" Rob requests.

"I will," Nathan agrees as he hugs his stepfather.

"Drive careful," Rob says as Nathan walks around to the driver's side of the car.

"You too," Nathan says, opening his door. "I'll see you guys soon I hope."

Lucas and Rob wave and watch Nathan pull away and turn the corner. Then, they turn to Riley and Rob asks, "So, what's the game plan?"

"Well, I was thinking we'd grab a quick lunch and then head on up to Toronto to meet the team. Do you both have your birth certificates with you?"

"Yep," they reply.

"Okay, then let's get going. You guys can follow me. We've got a long way to go."

**a/n: how was that for the chapter you've all been waiting for? was it heartfelt enough? please don't be afraid to let me know every singel thing you thought about it, i love hearing what everyone thinks. you all know how i like long reciews...so i'm going to try working on this some more, but i don't think there will be another update until thursday...i have a test wensday and it's economics, so i really need to study for it. good news is, thursday is my last day of school so i'll have 12 wonderful days to waork on the story in my spare time!! okay now...you know the drill PLEASE REVIEW!!!**


	29. Chapter 26: Somewhere Deep Inside

**Chapter Twenty Six: **_Something, Somewhere Deep Inside_

"Okay, honey…we can't wait to see you…drive careful…I love you too."

Deb smiles as she hangs up the phone.

"Was that dad?" James asks as he enters the kitchen, holding Chloe.

"Yes it was," Deb replies as Katie climbs up on a stool. "He just left Ohio, so he should be home early in the morning."

"That's awesome!" James says with a smile, setting Chloe down.

"Did he find mommy and Coop?" Katie asks with hope in her yes and in her voice.

"No, honey, not yet," Deb replies, touching her granddaughter's hand. "But the man who took them is in jail for good, so he can't hurt them. And…"

Deb smiles and James asks impatiently, "What?"

"He's got your baby brother with him."

Finally, a smile spreads across on Katie's face and she looks at James, grinning again too.

"Hey," Brooke says as she walks up the last stair and enters the open room where Marcus is working. "How's it coming?"

"It's not," Marcus sighs as Brooke sits down on the bed with a plate in her hands. "I don't have all the materials I need and I don't know how to get it working again because the charger has stopped working."

"So take a break…have some food."

Brooke hands him the plate with a sandwhich and chips, "Maybe you just need a little nourishment."

"Thanks," Marcus says accepting the plate.

Brooke watches him as he takes a bite.

"This is good," he says through a mouthful.

Brooke chuckles, " You sound like my kids."

Marcus sets his plate down as he asks, "How many do you have?"

"Three girls," Brooke says with a smile. "The three most beautiful, wonderful little girls on the planet."

"How old?"

"Jessilyn will be 8 in February, and Ashlyn and Megyn will be five in April."

Marcus nods and looks down, feeling guilty again for her not being able to be with her family.

"What about you?" Brooke interrupts his silent thoughts. "Do you have any kids?"

"Yeah…I have a son, well a son and a daughter now. Jonah turned three December 1st, and my wife Jessica was seven months pregnant with Olivia when Dan showed up."

Marcus looks back at Brooke on the bed. She has fallen asleep, sitting up against the wall. He smiles, stands up from his chair and covers her up with a blanket from the end of the bed.

"I'll get you guys out of here," he says when he sits back down. "I promise…if it's the last thing I do, I'll get you guys out of this mess."

Finally, after nearly six hours of driving, Rob, Lucas and Detective Owens reach their destination in Canada. Together, they enter the Ontario Provincial Police station and meet another detective and a few more officers involved in the case in a large meeting room.

"So how's the search coming guys?" Riley asks, walking over to a large stand where a map of Canada is being displayed, with pins sticking in it to locate different spots. The red pins mark areas already searched, and the green ones represent places not yet searched…and the red pins greatly outnumber the green ones.

"Well," another detective begins to explain as he stands next to Riley. "We've searched the more populated areas and even a few of the surrounding smaller areas. So far, there's been no sign."

Riley sighs and Rob and Lucas glance at each other, but they all listen as the other detective continues.

"We are looking into this secluded area of the provence about an hour or so away. Only a few families I think actually live around there. It's more like a woody camp ground, really. There are a few cabins spread throughout the area and it's not really camping season, so we were thinking, if this guy was really trying to keep them from civilization, then this would definitely be somewhere he might've taken them. And besides that…this place is about the only place left we have to look."

"Okay," Riley says, nodding his head and looking up at the officer. "Then that's where we need to go. Do you know how to get there?"

"Well, I haven't been in a few years, but I'm sure I remember the way. You can follow me."

"Great. Then, Rob and Lucas will come with me in my car, and I want another team to follow us, as well as a paramedic squad in case this is the place we're looking for. And something deep inside is telling me it is."

Nathan quietly opens the backdoor to his mother's house, and he enters just as quietly with Henry asleep in the baby carrier car seat. He is careful not to make too much noise so early in the morning. He sets the baby and carrier on the floor by the door so he can remove his own coat and shoes.

"Oh my goodness…" Nathan hears his mother's soft, yet excited whisper and he looks at her standing the kitchen in her bathrobe.

"Is that him?" She asks, coming closer. "Is it really him?"

Nathan smiles and lifts his son from the floor.

"Yep, it's him. This is Henry."

"Oh, Nathan, he's beautiful."

"Wait 'til you see him without all this winter stuff on. Come on…let's take him to the living room."

Deb follows Nathan with her grandson. Nathan stops when they enter the living room and he smiles. Katie is asleep with her blanket, pillow and teddy bear on the smaller couch across the room and James is asleep on the longer couch, with Chloe cuddled up, fast asleep next to him.

"They, um…they didn't want to go to bed," Deb says as Nathan looks at her. "They wanted to wait up for you and their new baby brother, so I made them a compromise. I told them they could sleep down here as long as they tried to get some sleep."

Nathan chuckles and says, "It's okay. We'll wake them up later. Come on…let's get this little guy out of this stuff so you can hold him and see how adorable he is."

Nathan carries Henry over to the empty chair, sits down and sits the carrier on the floor in front of him. He folds the lever down until it clicks. He unfastens the belt, unzips the coat and carefully pulls his son's arms from it.

"Wow," Deb says as she watches Nathan pull the other arm out. "He's a hard sleeper, isn't he?"

"I guess so," Nathan says. "Come here, buddy…"

Deb pulls the rest of the coat off Henry's feet as Nathan lifts him from the seat, He begins to fuss as Nathan brings him to his body.

"Maybe not," Nathan says with a chuckle as he stands up to rock his son. "Shh…"

"Awe…" Deb says, a hand over her chest as Henry continues crying. "He's got a heartbreaking cry though, doesn't he?"

"Who's crying?" Katie says groggily as she stretches on the short sofa.

"Dad?" James says, sitting up on the longer couch. "Dad, is that you?"

"Yeah, bud," Nathan replies as Henry settles his own cries. "It's me, I'm home."

"Daddy?" Katie says, sitting up for a better look. "Daddy!"

"Hey, Kate."

Nathan smiles as Katie climbs off the couch and rushes over to him. He sits down in the chair again so Katie can kiss his cheek.

"I missed you, Dad," Katie says as James hurries over after carefully scooting a still sleeping Chloe away from him.

"I missed you too."

Katie and James both look down at the baby boy now wide awake in Nathan's arms.

"Is that my baby brother, Dad?"

"No, Kate," James answers. " Dad just brought home someone else's baby brother."

Deb and Nathan smile and Nathan says, "Yes, Katie…this is your baby brother, Nathan Henry Scott."

"Hey, that's your name!"

"You don't say?" Nathan jokes.

"It's also your great great grandfather's name," Deb tells her grandchildren, "well, Nathan Henry is."

"Wow, Dad," James says, staring at his baby brother. "He looks just like you."

"Really? You think so?" Nathan looks at Henry. "I think he looks more like your mom."

Chloe sneaks around Katie and joins the rest of the group as she rubs her eyes sleepily.

"Hey princess," Nathan says, touching her head. "Good morning…I missed you."

Chloe stares at him, before focusing in on the baby.

"Look, Chloe," Katie says, putting an arm around her sister's shoulders when she bends down. "It's Henry, our baby brother. Now you're a big sister too."

The others watch as Chloe stares at Henry.

"What do you think of her Chloe?" Nathan asks after a minute.

Chloe looks up at Nathan. And from somewhere deep inside herself, she finds her will to speak again as she answers him with heartfelt question.

"Where'd mommy?"

**a/n: okay...how was that for a heartfelt reunion? Good? bad? i know y'all are still anxious for the bigger reunion with the whole family, right? well we've still got a few chapters before all that. but i still wanna know what you think. and also tell you that the following chapters are going go be very very INTENSE AND DRAMATIC and you may or may not want to scold me after you read them...depends if you love or hate huge cliff hangers...i will update the nxt chapter as soon as it is typed up. i have christmas cards i need to finish tonight and a test to study for, so i'll be looking forward to your reviews while i do that. **


	30. Chapter 27: Afraid to Fall

**_A/n: okay guys...the next chapter is ready. but as the title of this chapter kind of states, i am AFRAID to post it...i mean, i'm really excited too because i have been waitling like a week to get this posted, but i'm also afraid of all the scolding i'm gonna get after you read it...well, maybe i can just blame the cliffy on Laureen...and in regards to the cliffy, it will not be a long lasting cliffy, i already have the next chapter written,,,i jsut have to get it typed, so please don't panic too much. i will try to have your answers up tonight or tomorrow for sure. anyways, you know the drill...the faster you review, the sooner i will be willing to post another update. ENJOY!!!!_**

**Chapter Twenty-Seven:** _Afraid to Fall_

"Do you really think this is it?" Lucas asks from the back seat of Detective Riley's car. "This place we're headed…do you really think he took them there?"

"Secluded area…not many people around…quiet and away from civilization…" Riley replies. "Sounds pretty believable for a hideout, don't you think?"

"Definitely," Rob agrees. "But I think Lucas is afraid to believe it, afraid to fall down in believing we'll find them, and then lose all his hopes again if we don't. Is that right, Luke?"

"I guess you know me pretty well, Rob," Lucas replies.

OTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOTH 

"She's an intelligent little girl, I'll tell you that," Deb says to her son as they both stand with coffee mugs in the kitchen, looking into the living room at the kids sitting around Henry on the floor.

"She remembers her baby brother was inside her mom the last time she saw her," Deb continues. "And now she sees that little baby, who everyone says is her brother and she makes the connection that if he's here—"

"Then Haley should be too," Nathan finishes. He sighs, turns and walks over to the table and sits down. Deb follows him over.

"And I had no idea how to explain it too her so she understands," he finishes.

"It's okay, Nathan!" Deb puts her hand on her son's.

"No, it's not, Mom. I don't want her to start thinking that her mom and brother aren't coming back, and then stop talking again. I mean, look at her in there, Mom…"

They both look back into the living room, where Katie and Chloe are giggling as James tickles them and Henry back and forth.

"She has a smile on her face for the first time in months," Nathan continues. "Listen to that laugh…we haven't heard that beautiful laugh in what seems like forever. I don't want any of that to disappear again."

"It won't, Nathan. She'll be okay."

"But will she be? Really? I told her Haley is coming home…but what if she doesn't? What if they can't find them? What's worse…what if they're—"

"They're not, Nathan. You just have to believe they're okay…you can't let go. Hold onto that hope, don't be afraid. Just believe…"

Deb looks into the living room again and when she looks back at Nathan she finishes with, "It's working so far, right?"

OTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOTH 

Brooke wakes to a dark room and a pain in her neck from sleeping on it wrong. She sits up and looks at the desk, where she last remembers Marcus being.

"Damn…how long have I been asleep?"

She throws the blanket off of her and makes an effort to move, but she's too tired. _God…my back is killing me_, she realizes. She just wants to lay there, let herself be lazy. _But I think just laying here is making me more aware of the pain. Maybe I need to stand up and walk around. I need to go see how Haley and Cooper are doing too._

"C'mon fatty," she says, pulling herself to the edge of the bed. "Let's go."

OTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOTH 

AUTHOR'S NOTE: (from now until the end of the chapter, these events are happening at the same time or a couple minutes before or after another...i hope that made sense)

OTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOTH 

"What's that?" Lucas asks, leaning forward in the car as Riley drives down a narrow road through a heavily wooded area.

"What?" Rob wonders.

"There…through those trees," Lucas answers. "Is that a house?"

"Looks that way to me," Riley replies, turning the car in the direction Lucas pointed. "Nice eyes, Luke."

OTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOTH 

"Marcus," Haley says, sitting next to Cooper on the bed, watching the doctor change her son's bandages again. "He hasn't woken up in a really, really long time."

She waits for a response, but Marcus is concentrating on what he's doing…unless he's afraid to say something regarding Haley's concern…his concern too.

"Why hasn't he woken up?" She asks.

"He's badly injured, Haley, " Marcus finally responds. " It's very likely he may have an infection on top of the internal damage."

Haley sighs her fear and takes her son's wrist. She remains quiet for a minute as she stares at her watch.

"He has a faint pulse, Marc," she says when she lets his wrist go.

OTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOTH 

Damn…why is it taking me so long to walk down a few stairs? And why is hurting so much…why is my back hurting so much?

Brooke holds onto the railing, taking one stair at a time. That pain in the lower part of her back is getting stronger with every step she takes. She's afraid of what that means, because she remembers the last time she had that feeling…with the twins. She's made it halfway down the stairs, but…

Something's not right…this can't be…I don't… 

"Oh god!" She screams as she cringes and grabs her stomach as she crouches down in pain on the stairs.

OTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOTH 

Outside an old white house, Lucas and Rob quickly climb out of Riley's car. As they are slamming their doors closed, Riley and a few other cops leave their cars.

"Oh my god…" Lucas says, his heart beating faster when he sees the locks on the outside of the door. "This is it…this has got to be it. They have to be in there!"

Lucas runs quickly up to the porch.

OTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOTH 

This can't be happening…not now, it's way too soon. I can't be in labor…it's too early! Ohh….but I think I am!

"Haley!" Brooke screams from the stairs as she tries to stand again.

In the bedroom downstairs…

"Did you hear something?" Haley and Marcus ask in unison.

"Outside?" Marcus asks.

"No…Brooke," Haley quickly climbs off the bed and rushes to the door.

OTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOTH 

"Damn! It's stuck!" Lucas says as he pushes on the door.

"It's okay, Luke," Rob says as he pushes Lucas back from the door. "On the count of three, we kick it down. You ready?"

Lucas nods and counts off, "One…two…THREE!!!"

OTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOTH 

Breathe…just breathe…no, I can't…something's not…OW!!! Please…it's too soon…I'm so afraid…

She hears a loud crash and looks out the doorway of the stairs. And her eyes meet his as Haley and Marcus leave the bedroom.

"Lucas…"

She calls out his name as she loses balance and her hand slips off the rail of the stairs, the crutch holding her up in her excruciating pain.

"Brooke!" Lucas and Haley both scream her name as they watch her fall, unable to stop it as it happens.

**A/N: ohh…I know you guys are gonna scold me severely for that ending, righ? But I'm expecting it. But that was the best way to end the chapter…it leads right into the next chapter, which will be up sometime TONIGHT or TOMORROW….you have my word (unless something unexpected happens, still…you will not have to wait long) PLEASE REVIEW!!!**


	31. Shout Outs

Okay, I just had to post another shout out because those reviews cracked me up LOL all of them, and they came fast too!!!

**Jeytonbrucasnaley**

LOL. I laughed when I read that first line. I definitely expected such a reaction from you. LOL

Redheadedmomma 

**Thanks for your review too…I am glad you are liking the story.**

**Courtneylovejason**

HAHA!!! I most definitely expected a good scold from you. I knew you wqoul;d hate me for leaving that cliffy, but maybe you'll forgive me if I update very soon….

**So….to reward you all for updating so quickly….i think I'll update again tonight. Merry Christmas!!! LOL**


	32. Chapter 28: Open Your Eyes

**A/n: as promised, all my loyal reader's Christmas present…another chapter!!!! I may get another scolding, but I did promise this, so I hope you enjoy!!**

**Chapter Twenty Eight: **_Open Your Eyes_

"Brooke!" Lucas screams her name as he runs to her, passed out on the floor at the bottom of the stairs. "Oh, god…baby wake up! Come on, Brooke, please…"

"Oh my god…" Haley says, crying on the other side of Brooke as Lucas holds her head in his lap.

"We need those paramedics in here now!" Riley shouts outside the door.

"We need two teams," Marcus says to him and Rob. "Cooper is hurt badly too."

"Where is he?" Rob asks as Riley calls for assistance on his radio.

"In here," Marcus leads Rob into the bedroom.

"What happened to her?" Lucas asks Haley as he tries to wake his wife from unconsciousness. "Why'd she pass out?"

"I don't know, um…"

"You're a nurse, Haley! You didn't notice anything?"

"No, Luke, I…she was upstairs sleeping and Marc and I were down here with Cooper. I heard her scream my name I think, so I came out and then I saw what you saw."

"God…Brooke, you have to wake up."

He moves her head gently, doing everything he can to try to wake her. Haley looks over at two medics as they wheel a bed into the bedroom where her son is. She looks back at Lucas and then at Brooke, motionless on the floor.

"Oh my god…" she says and Lucas looks up at her.

"What?"

"She's bleeding."

Lucas looks down at the floor by Brooke's legs.

_No…no…I'm not going to lose her…I'm not going to lose them. I have to get her out of here._

"Damn it!" Lucas says before scooping his wife up from the floor with all his strength. Haley stands up with him and follows him.

"We need to get her to a hospital right now!" Lucas says, carrying her to the door. "She's bleeding badly."

"Another ambulance is pulling up right now," Riley says. "Take her out there, ride with her and we'll meet you at the hospital. Go!"

Lucas hurries out of the house as fast as he can with Brooke in his arms.

"I'll meet you there, Luke!" Haley shouts to him, running to the first ambulance. She climbs in before they close the doors.

"How long has he been unconscious like this?" A medic asks her as another drives the rig.

"On and off the first couple of days, but he hasn't woken in almost two days and his pulse is really faint. Is he going to be okay?"

"Well, we're going to get him to the nearest hospital as fast as we can. Then, we'll let the docs work their magic and hope for the best."

Haley holds her son's hand as she rides next to him.

Lucas climbed in the second ambulance just after Haley and Cooper left in the first one. He watches now as the medic checks Brooke's vitals, while the other medic operates the vehicle.

"Do you have any idea how far along she is?" The medic asks.

"Yeah…she's only like 30 weeks, I think," Lucas replies, trying to catch his breath. He looks up at the medic. "She hasn't had any prenatal care though…she's been a hostage in that house for five and a half months."

He waits as he watches the medic check her pulse. He asks, "Is she going to be okay? Is the baby going to be okay?"

"I don't know…she's lost a lot of blood."

Lucas lowers his head as the tears fall again.

"Come on, baby…don't leave me…please, please be okay."

He takes her hand in his as he cries.

"Lucas…"

He looks up and sees her moving her head as she tries opening her eys.

"Yeah, baby," he responds, moving another hand to her head. "I'm right here."

Finally, she opens her eyes and looks right at him. She gives him the smallest smile, happy to finally see his face.

"Hey," he says, returning the smile, also happy to see her…awake. He pets her head as he stares at her.

"Something's wrong…" she replies. "The baby…"

"No, no, it's going to be fine. You're both going to be fine. We're on our way to the hospital…you're going to be fine, I promise."

"We're almost to the hospital now, Brooke," the medic says. "Just hold tight."

"See," Lucas says. "We're almost there."

"Luke…my head hurts…the baby…everything hurts…I'm so scared…"

"Shh…you're going to be fine," Lucas says, stroking her head more, trying to calm her. "Stay with me, okay…we're almost there."

Brooke slowly moves her hand to his face and says, "I love you, Broody."

He takes her hand from his face and holds it in his as he replies, "I love you too, Pretty Girl…forever."

"Lucas…" she says. He can hear her voice growing weaker. But he's not going to let her drift away from him.

"What baby?"

She opens her mouth, wanting to get her words out before the pain takes her away, "Have…"

"Have what, baby?" Lucas touches her face again, listening carefully to her quiet voice. "Have what?"

"Faith…have…faith."

"Brooke….Brooke, no…open your eyes, baby, open your eyes!" Lucas starts to cry again at the loss of the light in her eyes and the sound of love and life in her voice.

"Please…come on, baby, stay with me…open your eyes!"

"We're here!" The medic says, pushing Lucas out of the way as the other medic opens the doors. "Let's get her inside."

**A/n: so…am I gonna get a scolding???? LOL. Just wanna give another shout out to all my readers and reviewers…you guys rock and I love all the reviews. Also, I must say HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY to TutorGirl16!!!! Hope you had a great day. My birththday was last week, so I hope you had as great a day as I did on mine. Anyway, please REVIEW!!!**


	33. EVEN MORE SHOUT OUTS!

A/n: Haha…love the reviews again, so I had to give some more shout outs…(much easier and faster to do it this way instead of reply to you all. So here goes….

**Snowbabie:**

Thanks for the belated birthday wishes!!!! I am totally aware of everything brooke has been through…unfortunately….no, I'm not gonna give anything away here yet/ LOL. Anyway, look for another update tomorrow probly.

**Jimmyeatworld23** Thanks for the love LOL 

**Saderia**

See…the whole point of these cliff hangers are to keep you guessing. LOL. Thanks for reading even though you are a leyton fan. I love any readers I can get 

**Nemo123489**

You really want a brucas boy, don't you? So do i….i think a boy would be totally cute, but I'm still debabting. Hopefully you'll like it whichever way I choose to go.

**Jeytonbrucasnaley**

Awe…you're sending me back to hell? Well, then I won't be able to write because my paper will be all burnt up LOL I warned you that the upcoming chapters were gonna be cliff hanger chapters. LOL. Maybe the next chapter won't be as bad…

**Courtneylovejason**

I couldn't help it!!! I had to leave it like that. My reasons for cliff hangers are simple….1. it gets me faster reviews (LOL) and 2. it helps me lead right into another chapter, therefore avoiding a writer's bloxk, asi have had much too often with this story. And when I freak out…I have to go listen to the Fray to calm me down too…and some gavin….and augustana…and fall out boy…and well all the rockin music there is out there LOL thanks for the specifics on what you like…I love knowing particularly what the fans loved or didn't love so much (I now know are the cliff hangers LOL)

**So you guys can look forward to some good stuff in the upcoming chapter: SEE WHAT'S GOING ON AT THE HOSPITAL FOR BOTH COOPER AND BROOKE AND ALSO, ROB TELLS NATHAN WHAT'S GOING ON….and that's all I have planned out right now. Does that relax anyone? LOL. Talk to you later.!!**

**3 Maureen 3**


	34. Chapter 29: Waiting for You

**Chapter Twenty Nine: **_Waiting for You_

"Cooper Scott, fourteen year old male…stab wound to the lower right side," the medics explain to the doctors as they wheel Cooper inside.

Haley walks quickly right behind them, listening to everything they say.

"Wound has been treated and bandaged, but the internal damage is unknown."

"How long has he been unconscious?" A male doctor asks as they push the bed into a trauma room.

"A couple of days," Haley answers, watching the doctors and nurses as the medics leave.

"Ready, one…two…three, move." The doctor counts off before he, two other doctors and two nurses move Cooper to the sturdy bed.

"Is he going to be okay?" Haley asks, stepping closer.

"We're going to do everything we can for him," the doctor answers, glancing at her as he works. "But we need you to wait outside."

A nurse tries ushering her to the double doors, but she stops her.

"No," she says. "It's okay. I'm a nurse, and his mother. I want to be in here with him."

"I understand," the nurse replies. "But the doctors will be able to do their job better and easier if you wait outside. I'll let you know as soon as they're done."

"Okay, but just tell me what you're going to—"

"We're going to stabilize him first, start an IV and then move him up to surgery. The nurse will show you up to the waiting room."

"Come on, Mrs. Scott," the nurse says sweetly, touching Haley's shoulder. "He's in good hands, I promise."

Haley nods, looks at Cooper on the table and says, "I'll be waiting, Coop…you come back to me."

Then, she walks with the nurse out of the room.

"Brooke Scott…thirty four year old female…about seven and a half months pregnant…fell down half a flight of stairs and lost consciousness. She came to on the ride over, but then passed out again upon arrival."

The medics explain all this as they wheel Brooke inside a few minutes after Cooper was wheeled inside. Lucas walks right next to them, not willing to ever leave her side again.

"One…two…three!" The doctor counts before they move Brooke.

"Help her…" Lucas pleads, standing back so they can work. "Please…help her…don't let her die."

"You're going to have to wait outside, sir," the doctor says as he and several others work to stabilize Brooke.

"No, I'm her husband," Lucas protests. "She needs me. I want to stay with her."

"Not right now," another doctor says. "She needs a lot of attention and we can't do that with you in here."

"She's lost a lot of blood," one nurse tells the doctors. "She's going to need a blood transfusion."

"Well, we need to get this baby out first," the doctor says, staring at the screen as he performs an ultra sound. "Let's get her ready to go up."

"No, wait," Lucas says worriedly. "She's not even eight months pregnant. It's soon for the baby."

"Yes, we are aware of that, Mr. Scott," the doctor says, rushing around with the others. "But both your wife and your baby are at a very high risk in very serious condition, and if we don't perform an emergency Cesarean soon, we could lose both of them. So please…let us do what we're here to do and the nurse will take you upstairs to the waiting room."

A nurse starts pulling him and pushing him out of the room. As she does, Lucas stares at his wife, laying unconscious on the table.

"I love you, Brooke," he says, picturing her beautiful face right in front of him. "I'll be waiting for you."

"Goodnight girls, I love you," Nathan says as he leaves his daughters' bedroom. He closes the door, but then Chloe yells at him from inside.

"Daddy…the dark!"

Nathan smiles and opens the door so a crack of light shines in the room.

"Sorry, honey," he says. "Sleep tight…big kisses."

"Big kisses…" Chloe repeats, starting to fall asleep.

Nathan walks down the hall to the nursery. He smiles again at Henry sleeping soundly in the crib.

"Now, once I know your mom and brother are okay, I can get some rest too."

He turns his head at the ring of the telephone. He takes the baby monitor off the dresser and leaves the room for his to answer the phone.

"Hello?"

"Hey Nate, it's Rob."

"Rob, hey, what's going on up there?" Nathan replies, sitting down on the bed. "I haven't heard from you guys…I was starting to get worried."

"Yeah, sorry…my phone wasn't working, so I had to find another. But um… we found them, Nate."

"Seriously?" He can't believe it…after waiting so long, had they really found them?

"Yep…they were locked in an old house in the woods secluded from everything and everyone."

"Oh thank god! Are they okay?"

"Haley is, and Brooke are not so good."

"What? Why? What happened to them?"

Brooke passed out and fell down the stairs and Cooper…"

_Why is he hesitating? _Nathan wonders as he waits for Rob to continue. _What happened to Cooper?_

"What?" He asks. "What is it, Rob? What' happened to Cooper?"

"He was stabbed, Nathan. Before he took off with Henry, Dan stabbed him…apparently, for getting in the way."

_He stabbed my son…my son is hurt…he stabbed my son. _

"Is he, um…" Nathan chokes on his words, fighting back his urge to cry because he needs to be strong now. "Is he going to be okay?"

"We're not sure yet. They just took him up to surgery. We probably won't know anything more for a few hours. I'll call you as soon as we do."

"Okay, but call my cell. I'm coming up there."

"Are you sure?"

"Definitely. My son needs me. So does my wife and my brother. I have to come. I can't just sit here and wait."

Rob nods at the other end and says, "Okay…then we'll be waiting for you."

**A/n: okay…that ending to the chapter wasn't too horrible, was it? Well, I've got some more writing to do, but hopefullyi can get something up later. If not, it might be a few days because I am going out of town on saturrday, and then of course as you all know, Sunday is Christmas eve and Monday, Christmas, so…I hope you understand. I will be writing when I have free time, but I might not get an update up for a few days. But please still be sure to review!!! thanks**


	35. ShoutOut & BRUCAS BABY info

I know, I know…more shout outs LOL. These are for the people who just got to read all the dramatic stuff, so I want to respond to you.

Deli41321 

Again, with the long review…thanks I love your long reviews  and I'm thankful for no hate mail…LOL  thanks for the birthday and Christmas greetings  as for what the brucas baby will be….i have had it set in my mind for quite awhile now, as I have been making my plans for the story's end and the plans for the sequel. I want everything to fit together nicely,so my decision has already been made. I decided already, shortly after starting the story. The general consensus though at all of the sites I post at, is that most readers love the idea of a brucas boy…and I do too. Guess you'll have to wait and see what I choose….i have a name picked out for both, so now it just comes down to deciding for certain what it will be., which I'll have to do coming up in the next chapter or two. So look forward to that.

Brucas2006 

Thanks for your review too. You seem really excited about this story LOL. Well, there's still some big things to come, so keep reading!!!

**To everyone: THANKS SO MUCH FOR YOUR AWESOME REVIEWS…I WILL TRY TO UPDATE AGAIN TOMORROW BEFORE I HEAD OUT OF TOWN FOR THE NIGHT. BUT IF I DON'T, THERE'LL PROBLY BE AN UPDATE SHORTLY AFTER CHRISTMAS.DEPENDS ON WHEN I GET TO WORK ON IT. SO STAY TUNED!!!**


	36. Chapter 30: Worrying

**Chapter Thirty: **_Worrying_

Rob steps off the elevator with two plastic cups in his hands. He returns to the waiting room. Haley is sitting on the couch, leaning forward with her hand on her forehead.

"Hey," Rob says when he stops in front of her. She looks up. "I brought you some coffee."

"Thanks," Haley says, accepting the cup.

Rob sits down next to her and asks, "Anything yet?"

Haley shakes her head and says, "But it's only been, what…like fifteen minutes?"

"Seems like fifteen hours in situations like these, doesn't it?"

"I don't think I can last even one hour not knowing anything."

"Well, you know what they say?" Rob looks at Haley as she looks at him. "No news is good news, right?"

"I hope so. I don't know what I'll do if he's not okay."

Rob rubs her back like he would his own daughter. After a few seconds, she remembers another worry on her mind and she asks," Oh, did you talk to Nathan? Is Henry with him? Is he okay?"

"Yeah, yeah…he's fine, he's safe. Nathan has Henry and Dan is in jail for good. He never made it past the border."

"Oh thank god." Haley sighs relief as she leans back against the couch. "That bastard needs to rot in hell for all eternity for what he's done, especially if…"

She can't even think about the possibility that Cooper might not live through this. No…she needs to believe he'll be okay…she needs to have faith.

"Have you seen Lucas anywhere yet?" She asks. "Do you know what's going on with Brooke and the baby?"

"No, I haven't seen him. But they should be here. Their ambulance left a few minutes after yours."

"God…I hope she's okay."

Down the hall, Lucas steps off the elevator and looks around for direction to the waiting room. Haley looks to her right when the presence of someone very close to her heart overwhelms her.

"Luke…" she says as she smiles.

His eyes see her too.

"Haley…"

Haley jumps from the couch and runs to him as he runs for her. They meet with the biggest embrace they've ever had in al their years of friendship. She cries into his shoulder while he runs his hand over the back of her head.

"I missed you so much, Luke."

"Me too, Hales…more than you'll ever know. I'm so glad you're okay."

They finally pull away from each other and stare into one another's eyes. Before she can even ask the question, from the pain in his eyes, Haley knows it's not good.

"Where is she?" She asks instead.

It takes much strength for him just to answer," They, um…they brought her up here for an emergency C-Section."

"What? But she's—"

"I know, but they said if they didn't, we could lose Brooke and the baby."

"Oh my god…I'm so sorry Luke."

Haley hugs him again.

"What about Cooper?" Lucas asks after their hug. "How's he doing?"

"I don't know. He's still in surgery."

"Surgery? For what?"

"He was stabbed, Luke…Dan stabbed him."

"Oh my god, Haley, I'm so sorry. I thought he just really sick. I didn't know he was…"

"It's okay," Haley says. "At least I hope it will be."

"Thanks for coming over, Mom," Nathan says as he holds the door open for his mom about forty five minutes after getting the call from Rob.

"Of course, honey," Deb replies, removing her coat. "I told you to call me if you need me."

"I know, but I feel like I've been leaning on you a lot lately and—"

"Nathan, I'm your mother…that's what I'm here for."

Nathan smiles and says, "Well, I want to get on the road as soon as possible and you already know the kids' routine, so… oh, Henry will probably be up in about an hour wanting to eat again. I already made a bottle, so all you have to do is heat it up for him when he wakes up."

"Okay. Anything else?"

"Not that I can think of right now. Like I said, you've been with them, so you know their routine."

There's a soft knock on the door and Nathan opens it.

"Hey guys, c'mon in."

Peyton and Keith step inside and Nathan closes the door. Peyton throws her arms around Nathan and he hugs her back.

"Thank you so much for calling," she says. "For letting us in on what's going on."

"Of course. I know how worried you've been too." Nathan looks over to Keith and asks," How's Karen?"

"Worried," he replies. " Just as I am."

"Well, Rob said Brooke is in pretty serious condition and their phones haven't been working, so that's probably why he hasn't called. He's got to be hurting pretty bad."

"Yeah…that's why I want to get up there too so I can be there for him."

"You guys should get going before the kids wake up and hear you," Deb suggests.

"Yeah," Nathan agrees, putting on his coat. " Are you sure you can handle explaining to them tomorrow?"

"Yeah. Do you all have your birth certificates and the necessary documents?"

They nod and Nathan says, "Okay, then let's go."

"Wait…I want to come too."

They turn and see James standing on the stairs, dressed and with his coat and shoes on too.

"Please let me come, Dad," he says, walking down the rest of the stairs.

"James…" Nathan says, walking to him. "You can't come."

"Please, Dad…let me come. I need to go too."

"I know you want to, Sport." Nathan kneels down in front of him. "But it's not a good idea right now. Your brother is in bad shape and everything is so crazy and we need to wait until it all settles down. I need you to stay here with grandma and help with your sisters and your little brother. Besides, you've still got a week of school before break."

"But nothing happens in the last week before Christmas break, Dad. Besides, I wouldn't be able to concentrate. I need to go with you. I need to be there for Cooper like he was for me. Please…don't make me wait anymore to see my mom and my brother."

Nathan sighs as he stares at his son. It's at moments like these when he sees Haley in him more and more.

"It seems like we've been waiting for days," Haley says with her head on her best friend's shoulder. "I can't take it anymore."

"Me either," Lucas says. "I need to know what's going on with Brooke. I need to know she's okay."

He leans forward and asks," Hales, all this time you were with her, did it ever seem like something wasn't right?"

"No, not at all. And I paid close attention, Luke, I promise. Everything seemed normal and I'm sure it was. It was probably the stress that sent her into labor. That's what did it for me. But I truly believe she and the baby are going to pull through this just fine. Brooke's a fighter and completely stubborn. And if this baby is anything like her, he or she will inherit those traits too."

"I hope so."

"Mr. Scott?"

Haley and Lucas both look up at the doctor, standing before them, dressed in blue scrubs with a white paper mask hanging from his neck…and holding a paper hat in his hands.

**A/n: okay…another cliff hanger, but that's all I have written right now. Plus, I need to be sure all my readers will come back to read after Christmas LOL. There probably won't be another update until then. So feel free to scold me if you must. LOL. Let me know what you think. Thanks, and Merry Christmas everyone, or Happy Holidays!! **


	37. Chapter 31: Lost

**Chapter Thirty One: **_Lost_

Lucas and Haley stand up immediately at the sight of the doctor, and Rob walks over from the opposite side of the waiting room.

"Yes?" Lucas says immediately. "Is my wife okay? And the baby?"

"The baby has been taken to the Neonatal ICU," the doctor answers. "She is very tiny and her lungs are still very underdeveloped."

"Is she going to be okay?" Lucas asks, Haley listening intently.

"Well, she's about 8 ½ weeks premature, so it's still a long road ahead, but babies have survived this early."

Haley sighs relied and Lucas asks, "What about Brooke?"

Lucas and Haley can both see the doctor's concern and hesitation as he answers.

"She lost a lot of blood and we had to work a long time to stop the bleeding. Fortunately, we were able to do without having to perform a hysterectomy."

"But is she okay?"

Again, the doctor hesitates, but he answers, "She's comatose. We've done all we can for at this point."

"What do you mean? Why is she in a coma? If you've done all you can for her, then why isn't she awake?"

"We believe she's suffered a concussion from her fall, and a comatose state often results. Plus, with all the trouble from labor and the bleeding had an impact too."

"When should she wake up?" Haley asks, though, being a nurse, she already knows no one can be sure when someone will wake from a comatose state. She merely posed the question for her friend and brother, standing there speechless and so afraid.

"I don't know. When and if she does is up to her now. I'm very sorry that we can't do more, but you may see her now if you'd like."

Lucas still doesn't say anything. The doctor looks at Haley and says, "When you're ready…the nurses know what room she's in."

"Thank you," Haley says to the doctor before he walks away. She looks back at her best friend.

"Luke…"

"This isn't right, Haley," he says, looking at her. "It's not supposed to be like this. She's supposed to be awake, she's supposed to be okay. I've waited for her for five and a half months, and now…it's like she's gone again."

"I know, but she's not gone, Luke," Haley says, rubbing his back. "She's just lost. We'll just have to talk to her and help her find her way back, like we did for Nathan. She's a fighter, remember?"

"You have that baby to think about too," Rob speaks, stepping over to Lucas's side.

"That's right," Haley says with a smile. "You have another little girl who's going to need you."

He knows they are both speaking to him. But he can't really understand what they are saying. He can't focus on it because he can't stop thinking about Brooke.

"Come on," Haley says, pulling on his arm. "Let's just go see Brooke."

Slowly, he begins to follow.

Karen turns another page of her thick photo album, one she's been assembling throughout the years. All the photos in this one are of her son and his family. There are pictures and pictures of Christmases and birthdays and other special family gatherings. So many pictures…

There are pictures of Lucas and Brooke together at their wedding…of Brooke during her first pregnancy…and of Lucas holding his first child, his first baby girl in his arms at the hospital…and of course a picture of Jessilyn meeting and holding her baby sisters for the first time at the hospital. With every page, there are more and more pictures Karen has taken of her son, daughter-in-law and grandchildren. And as she looks through this album, Karen prays that she will have another Christmas picture to put in it this year and even more pictures…and that Brooke and her new grandchild will be in them too.

"Shouldn't you be asleep?" Karen looks up at her daughter standing in the doorway.

"I can ask you the same thing," she replies as Kelsey walks over to the kitchen table and sits down.

"I can't sleep. I've just been laying in bed for hours."

"I couldn't sleep either. I've just been looking through album after album since your dad left. He told me I should try to get some sleep, but…I couldn't even if I tried. I've never been this worried before."

It's quiet for a moment as Kelsey stares down at the pictures too, particularly at one of her brother and Brooke. She looks up and says, "It's so not fair, Mom."

Karen looks at her daughter as she continues, "Lucas has been through so much already, and so have those girls. And if something happens to Brooke…it's just not fair. Why does it keep getting worse?"

"I don't know , honey…but I sure do hope it gets better soon."

"This is her room," Haley says when they reach 316. She looks at Lucas and she takes his hand and says, "Come on…together."

He pushes down on the handle and they enter her room. He stops walking when he sees her…his wife, his Brooke. And it pains him to see her so helpless and hooked up to all those monitors.

"Come on," Haley says, trying to pull him nearer to the bed, but he resists.

"I can't…" he says, shaking his head. "I can't do this…"

"Luke…" Haley says, watching him back away. "Lucas!"

But he turns and runs out of the room and to the elevator.

"Luke, where're you going?" Rob asks him when he sees him.

Lucas turns around quickly and says, "Keys…Rob, I need your keys."

"Why? Where are you—"

"Please, Rob! Just give me your keys…I need to get out of here."

Reluctantly, Rob hands Lucas his keys just as the elevator doors open and Lucas leaves.

A/n: So how was that guys? I worked on this chapter for awhile until I got it just right, so I hope you review and let me know what you think. The next chapter is what you've all been waiting for, so I'll try to have it up sometime later today, probably after I get home from shopping. If for some reason it doesn't get up today, I promise it will be up tomorrow!!! Thanks for reading, now go review!!!


	38. Shout Outs Again sorry its not an UD

Okay…gotta give some more shoutouts so that I can clear some things up because I dobn't want anyone going nuts or dying on me!!!! LOL so…

Nemo123489 

I had a feeling someone was going to be disappointed that they didn't have a girl. Please don't be too mad….i have planned on it being a girl from the very beginning because I have bigger plans for her and the L. Scott family. Please keep reading…I promise you'll enjoy!!! If you've liked what I've written so far

Deli41321 

Whoa whoa! Relax, relax…I don't have any more big dramas like that in store, except for one more actually, but I think you guys will like it. You will def enjoy the next chapter, cuz it's a Naley reunion!!!!

Brucas2006 

LOL. You're not the only one to think that….someone at othforums thought the very same thing, I wasn't even thinking about that when I picked that number. LOL I know everyone was hoping for a boy, but as I said before, I got plans for that little girl. You'll love the coming chapters…Naley reunion and some stuff with cooper.

CCScott23 

So excited that you're excited. Another update as soon as I have time (hopefully after I get home from the mall tomorrow)

Scott-bruthr-lovr3-23 

Sorry I couldn't update when you wanted…I went shopping with my friends, but as soon as the update is typed, it will be posted. So have a little more patience 


	39. Chapter 32: Be Okay

**Chapter Thirty-Two: **_Be Okay_

Sitting at her best friend's bedside, Haley watches as she sleeps. And it's so unreal to her, how it can be this way. They were together and talking less than 48 hours ago. Now they are together again…but the room is silent, except for the steady beep from the monitors.

"Hey, buddy," she says, taking Brooke's hand. "That's what you're supposed to say to me, but um…I guess I had to say it for you this time. I know you're kind of lost right now, but it's really important that you find your way back because Lucas needs you…and so do those adorable little girls."

Haley fights to hold back her tears, but right now…she just needs to cry.

"You've got another little girl too, Brooke. I haven't seen her yet, but I know she's beautiful. I mean, she's got you for her mother. So you need to be okay. You need to come back to us soon, okay? Because that little girl needs you…just like we all do."

After a few more minutes with Brooke, Haley leaves her room. She makes her way to the nurses' station.

"Excuse me," she says.

"Yes, may I help you?" A nurse answers.

"Yes, I was wondering if you can tell me anything about what's going on with my son."

"What's his name?"

"Cooper Scott."

After a minute of looking through charts, the nurse says, "Yes…it looks like he is still in surgery. The doctors haven't written anything more on his condition."

"Well, do you know how much longer it's going to be?"

"I'm sorry, I don't. But I'll be sure the doctor lets you know right away."

"Okay, thank you."

Haley turns and starts back toward the waiting area. But she stops when she hears the chime of the elevator and that feeling of intense love overwhelms her again. Her heart skips a beat when she, after turning around, see him coming off the elevator.

"Nathan…" she says, breathing heavily as she starts running for him.

Tears in his eyes, Nathan runs for Haley too and they throw their arms around each other.

"Oh Haley…baby, I've missed you so much," Nathan cries into her shoulder.

"God, Nathan," she cries too, squeezing him tight. "You have no idea?"

"I think I do, Haley," Nathan says, pulling away and holding her face in his hands. "I think I do."

They smile at one another as they come in for their longest, most romantic and passionate kiss of their entire relationship.

"God, have I missed these lips," Nathan says when they pull away.

"So have I," Haley says, putting her fingers to his lips.

"Mom?"

Haley looks down and smiles at her little boy.

"Jamee…" she says, kneeling down to see him face to face. "God, you've gotten so tall and so handsome."

"Is it really you?" James whispers to her. "Or am I dreaming again?"

"No…it's me, baby," Haley says, touching his face. "I'm right here."

Her son smiles and, like his father had, throws his arms around Haley and hugs her tight.

"I missed you so much, Mom," he says. "I was so scared I wasn't ever going to see you again."

"It's okay, baby."

Haley runs her hand over the back of his light brown head. "I'm here now. You don't have to worry anymore."

After her hug with James, Haley stands up with a smile to Peyton and Keith. And still with her tears, she gladly accepts a hug from Peyton.

"I'm so glad to see you're okay," Peyton says after a sniffle. "I prayed for days."

"Well, I guess your prayers paid off," Haley says as they pull away to hug Keith.

"How's Cooper doing?" Nathan asks as Haley steps back, allowing him to drapw an arm around her shoulders.

"I'd really like to know that myself," Haley replies. "I guess he's still in surgery. I swear it seems like they've had him in there for days."

"What about Brooke?" Peyton asks. "Is she okay?"

"Well…she's in a coma. The doctor says she's suffered a concussion from her fall and all the trauma from that and the baby has resulted in a coma and they're not sure when or if she'll wake up."

"Oh my god…" Peyton says in shock. "Well, what about the baby?"

"She's in the NICU. Her lungs are still very underdeveloped and she has a very low weight, but the doctor says it's not impossible for her to survive, so we can still hope and pray for that."

"Is Lucas with her?" Keith asks.

"Actually no, he hasn't even gone to see her yet. I walked with him to Brooke's room and he must not have been able to stand looking at her and not be able to hear her, because he took off and left the hospital."

"What?" Keith responds surprised. "Where'd he go?"

"I don't know…but I'm sure he'l be back."

"Maybe he just needed to clear his head," Nathan suggests.

"Haley!" Everyone turns at Rob's voice.

He walks up to them, followed by Cooper's doctor.

"Yeah—oh my god, is Cooper okay?" She asks him. "Please give me some good news after all this waiting."

The doctor smiles and says, "Your son is going to be fine."

"Oh thank god!" Haley sighs relief as she sinks into Nathan. He kisses her head.

"Now, there was a lot of damage," the doctor begins to explain. "We had to remove his spleen, but we were able to repair the damage. He is going to have to go through some physical therapy because it's going to be difficult for him to start walking again after the prolonged injury, but he will. The crutches will help get him around for now."

Nathan and Haley nod and the doctor adds one final note, "Your son is very fortunate to have made it through this. Another couple of days and the bleeding could've killed him. Someone somewhere must be looking out for him."

They smile and Nathan asks, "When can we take him home, back to North Carolina?"

"Well, I would like to keep him here for a few more days as a precaution. We just need to be sure there aren't any furthur complications, but I'd say by the end of the week you can take him home."

"Thank you," Nathan says, shaking the doctor's hand before he walks away.

Then, he and Haley smile at one another some more and chuckle before they hug again. After all the days and hours of waiting, their son is okay.

_God, am I sick of waiting. Nothing ever good comes of waiting. I waited months to see her, to save her and now…I have to wait even longer. And if waiting doesn't pay off this time, if she doesn't wake up…I swear I'll…_

"Here you go, Mr. Scott," the guard says, opening the barred gate for him.

Lucas steps inside and the guard locks it closed as he says, "Give me a holler when you're through."

"Thanks," Lucas says, watching the guard walk away. His eyes drift over to a glare at Dan, grinning at him from his cell bed.

"Long time no see, son," Dan says as Lucas stares. "How's the wife? Did you find her yet?"

"God damn you, you son of a bitch!" Lucas shouts, throwing his fist into Dan's jaw. "It's all your fault. She's laying in a coma because of you!"

"How is her coma my fault?" Dan asks while Lucas presses him against the bars.

"She fell down the stairs…the stairs in the house you locked her up in! She would've never been there if you hadn't kidnapped her!"

"Well, what do you want from me now? There's nothing you can do now."

"You can burn in hell, damn it!" Lucas says, pushing Dan harder.

He finally releases him and walks back to the gate to call for the guard to let him out. Before he leaves, he looks back at Dan and says, "I swear to god…if she doesn't make it through this…if she doesn't wake up…you're going to hell a lot sooner than you want to."

**A/n: so…how was it? Everything you hoped it would be LOL Well, let me know either way. This story is going really well for me right now. I started on the last chapter last night, so this story wil be comeing to a close shortly. There are only two or three chapters left…I know, sad huh? But then I will start on the sequel  )**


	40. Chapter 33: Come Back

**Chapter Thirty Three: **_Come Back_

Holding one another's hand, Nathan and Haley enter their son's recovery room, James following them. Nathan sighs relief at the sight of him as they approach the bed.

"God, he looks so much older," Nathan says, standing with Haley on the left side, and James standing on the right.

"Maybe it's his hair, Dad," James suggests staring at his brother. "His hair is short now…like yours."

"Yeah, maybe, but I think it's the time apart from him."

"When is he gonna wake up, Mom?" James asks.

"Well, the doctor said it shouldn't be too long…" Haley answers. "Just as soon as the anesthesia wears off."

"Hey, do you guys mind?" Cooper says groggily with his eyes still closed. "It's kind of hard to sleep with everyone talking."

All three of the, smile as Cooper opens his eyes. He smiled at his parents, then at his brother.

"Hey," he says with a smile.

"Hey, sweetie," Haley says, running her hand over his head and short black hair. "It's so good to see you finally awake."

Cooper makes eye contact with his father again and he says, "Hey, Dad…long time no see."

"Too long," Nathan says, touching his son's hand. "Way too long."

"Hey Coop," James says quietly and Cooper looks back at him. "I missed you."

"I missed you too, little brother," Cooper replies. He holds out his first and James smiles as he pounds it gently.

"So…can I give you a hug?" James asks shyly.

Cooper smiles and says, "I think I might have to hit you if you don't."

Nathan and Haley smile as they watch their boys share a hug.

"So how're you feeling bud?" Nathan asks when Cooper looks back at them.

"Like I was stabbed," Cooper answers and Haley shoves his shoulder playfully but gently.

"Does it hurt really bad?" James wonders.

"Well, not as bad as when it happened, but I'm still really sore."

"Well, it'll probably be that way for awhile," Haley says. "But the doctor prescribed you some pain meds, so that should make it a little bearable."

"Sweet!" Cooper jokes and Nathan and Haley chuckle again.

"So when are they letting me go home?"

"They want to keep you here for a few more days to make sure there are no more complications," Haley explains. "But we'll be here with you."

"The important thing is you're okay," Nathan adds.

Cooper nods, then looks at Haley and asks, "What about Henry? Is he okay?"

"Yeah, he's fine," Nathan answers. "He's home with your grandmother and your sisters. And Dan is locked up for good. He's not getting away this time, I promise."

"Good," James says. "Now he can't ever hurt any of us again."

"He left?" Karen talks through the phone to Keith, who's talking on the hospital payphone in Canada. "Well, where did he go?"

"We don't know," Keith answers. "But I'm sure he'll be back soon. He's been gone for several hours. I'll let you know as soon as he's back, I promise."

"Okay, well, thanks for letting me know. I have to go now though, so I can get the kids off to school."

"Okay, honey. I love you."

"I love you too."

She clicks off the phone as Kelsey enters the kitchen and sets her purple book bag on the counter.

"Was that dad?"

"Yeah, um…you have another niece, but she's in the NICU."

"Is she going to be okay?"

"Well, the doctor said she has a fighting chance, and in a couple of weeks, they are going to fly her to a hospital here."

"Good," Kelsey sighs. "What about Brooke?"

Karen shakes her head and she says," She's um…she's not doing so good. Keith said she's stable and she's breathing on her own, but the doctors aren't sure when she'll wake up."

"Oh my god, but—"

"Nana, we're ready to go," Ashlyn says as she, Megyn and Jessilyn stop in the doorway of the kitchen.

Karen and Kelsey both look over at them and knowing what they know about Brooke, stare at the three of them with sympathy. Jessilyn is the only one who understands their expressions.

"What's the matter?" She asks.

"Nothing, sweetie," Karen says quickly, picking up her purse. "I'm just worried that you are going to be late for school if we don't leave right now. Come on…"

After sitting in the waiting room for several hours, Peyton has finally built up the strength to visit Brooke. So she exhales sharply and pushes open the door.

"Hey…mommy Brooke," she says softly with a smile as she comes closer to Brooke's bedside. "You remember that name? You and Lucas had only been married a few moths when you found out you were pregnant with Jessilyn. You were so scared…but after you talked to Lucas, Haley and me, you finally started getting used to and excited about the idea of being a mom. So we started calling you mommy Brooke. And you know…the nickname really suited you. You've turned out to be a really great mom."

Peyton sits down and takes her friend's hand in hers as she continues, "But you're not done yet, sweetie…your little girls are still so little. And now you've got this brand new little girl who really needs her mommy. Little girls really need their mothers, Brooke…and I know you understand that."

"Listen…I know you remember when my mom died. I was Jessilyn's age and losing my mom so young was really, really hard for me. So you can't do that to her or her sisters. You can't leave your daughters without their mother, okay? They need you so much…and so do I."

Peyton sniffles as more and more tears fall from her eyes.

"You're my best friend, Brooke…and you always will be, but I need you to wake up and come back to me. We can't exactly go shopping together or take the kids to the park so we can talk while you lay in a coma, so you have to come back soon, okay? I don't know what I'll do if I lose you. And you better not ever let me find out."

Peyton reaches down and pulls a photo from her purse. She stares at it for a moment before leaning the photo of her and Brooke in high school against the phone on the bedside table.

"That's so you'll remember us, "she says and looks at Brooke again. "The greatest friendship there ever was…and always will be."

**A/n: so…..you know what to do now. REVIEW!!! PLEASE!!!! LOL well, I'm working on the final chapter right now, which looks like it'll probably be a lnog chapter. and it might take me a day or two because I have some final tweaks to make with it. Some stuff I need to add that I forgot, like a certain reunion and etc etc….LOL. so yeah….i have to get busy with that so I can hopefully wrap this story up before 2007. LOL. Then I can start work on the sequel. So go ahead right now and let me know what you think. **


	41. Chapter 34: His Saving Grace

**Okay…are you ready for it? The final chapter, the tear jerkiest chapter of them all? I hope so, because this is it. I can't believe I got it finished so soon, but I did. After six months of writing, it's finally complete. Now I worked long and hard on this chapter to make it perfect, so please review after you read. And please make them long reviews with all your thoughts about this chapter and the whole story itself. After I get some reviews, I will let you all in on what I have planned so far for the sequel , I even have a title in mind, so….the sooner you all review, the sooner you can find out about that. Please enjoy this update and please be sure to check out the sequel when it's posted. I have loved posting this story for you all and I can't wait to see how many of my readers come back for the sequel. Thank you all so much. You've all helped make this story a success!!!!! I love you all ) ) )**

**Chapter Thirty Four: **_His Saving Grace_

"How're you doing?" Jake asks Peyton through the phone while trying to feed Ellie at the same time.

"Okay, I guess," Peyton answers, leaning against the wall by the payphone. "It was hard seeing and talking to Brooke and having her not able to talk back, but at least we can see her now. And we can talk to her and hope she hears us and wakes up soon."

"Definitely," Jake agrees, setting the bowl of macaroni and cheese on the table, away from Ellie's reach in the high chair.

"How are the kids?" Peyton asks.

"They're good. Ellie has a little cold, but it's nothing serious. And Jenny called to check in with everything. She said she'll be coming home with Tyler next week so she'll be home for Christmas."

"Good…we all really need our family right now. Well, as soon as we know what's going to happen with Brooke and the baby, we'll probably head home. But I should go before the time runs out."

"Okay, hun. I love you."

"I love you too. Give the kids a kiss for me."

"I will. Bye, babe," Jake says before clicking off the phone.

Peyton hangs up the phone as the elevator doors open and Lucas walks off. She notices him as he looks at her.

"Lucas!" She says as she hugs him.

He hugs her back as she says, "We've all been so worried about you. Where did you go?"

Peyton stares at him as she waits for his response.

"I, um…I needed to get some frustrations out, so I went to see Dan."

Peyton nods and says, "Yep…definitely where I would've gone too."

"So… have you gone in? Have you seen her yet?"

"Yeah…it was hard, but it was something I needed to do. You need to too, Luke. Brooke needs you to."

Lucas nods and says, "I know, and I will, but…I think I need to go see the baby first."

"Okay."

"Will you come with me?"

"Of course," Peyton agrees, looping her arm in his as Keith, Rob, Nathan, Haley and James walk up.

"We'll all come with you, Luke," Keith says.

"We were wondering when you'd be back," Haley says. "I knew you wouldn't just abandon them."

"Of course not," Lucas says. "I just…there was something I needed to go do, someone I needed to punch. But I'm ready to do this now."

"Then, let's do it," Nathan says. "We're here for you, Luke…all the way."

Lucas nods and with half his family beside him, begins down the hall for the Neonatal ICU.

OTHOTHOOTHOTHOTOHOTHOTOHOTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOTOTOOTHOTH

The nurse said not everyone could go in with him when they reached the NICU. And they only allow family inside, though Lucas told her everyone with him are family. Still, she said not all of them could go in, not at once at least. So following hospital policy, Lucas asks his brother and sister to come in with him. So he, Nathan and Haley dress in the gowns given to them by the nurse and follow her inside.

"Now she is still too little and too sick to be held outside the incubator," the nurse explains as she leads them past other sick and premature newborns. "But you can put your hands inside and hold her hands if you'd like. And of course, talking to the little ones, we in the NICU have come to believe, helps them get better. So you can talk as much as you like, as long as you do it quietly and don't disturb the other families."

She stops at another incubator, where inside lay a tiny infant with dark brown hair, sleeping while the tube she's connected to helps her breathe. Lucas, Nathan and Haley surround her. Lucas touches the clear box as he stares at his baby girl…so helpless and fighting for every breath her tiny little life wants.

"God…" Haley whispers as the tears return. Nathan squeezes her close to him as his eyes glisten too at the sight of his niece in such a helpless condition.

"She's beautiful," Lucas says, still staring at her. He looks at the nurse and asks, "Can I—"

"Of course," the nurse says, opening the compartments where Lucas can put his arms.

Slowly, he sticks his hands and arms inside and he touches her tiny hand as the tears flow from his eyes.

"She looks so much like Brooke, doesn't she?" He says, looking up at Nathan and Haley.

"Very…" Haley responds. "Very much like her."

Lucas looks back down at his baby as the nurse asks, "Do you have a name picked out yet, Mr. Scott?"

He thinks about it as he stares at this little girl and holds her hand, a hand smaller than his thumb.

_Naming her is something Brooke and I are supposed to do together. It's a right of passage for Brooke. After carrying her and protecting her for so long, Brooke is supposed to have the final say in her name. I don't want to do this without her…I don't want to choose a name she wouldn't like. _

"We know this is hard for you, Luke," Nathan says, breaking the silence and interrupting his brother's thoughts. "But she deserves a name. Maybe naming her now will help her get stronger. If we can call out her name when we talk to her, she'll know she has people around who lover her and she'll get stronger."

Lucas nods and looks down at his daughter again, thinking about the best name for her, a strong name that Brooke would like too. The harder he thinks about a name, though, the more Brooke crosses his mind. Brooke is his everything. Since high school, it's been all about Brooke for him. And staring at this little girl, all he can see is Brooke, his love…his saving grace. And thinking about her, naturally he remembers the last thing she said to him in the ambulance.

"_Have faith…" she told me. Faith…and grace…my saving grace. She's my saving grace…so faith must be hers._

"Grace…" he finally answers while the others stare at him. He looks up at the nurse and states the rest of her name. "Gracelyn Faith Scott."

The nurse nods and with a smile she says, "Gracelyn Faith Scott…that's beautiful."

Nathan and Haley agree as they come around to hug their brother.

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"How's she doing?" Keith asks Nathan and Haley when they return to the waiting room after deciding to give Lucas some time alone with his daughter.

"Well," Haley begins, glancing at Nathan. "She's pretty much fighting for every breath right now. She's beautiful, but she's got a long road ahead of her."

"Yeah, but with the name Lucas gave her," Nathan continues. "I think she's going to pull through just fine."

"What did he name her?" Peyton wonders.

"Grace…" Haley answers with a smile. "Gracelyn Faith Scott."

The others smile too and Keith says, "Oh yeah….she's definitely going to be a strong little fighter."

"Just like her mother," Peyton says, thinking about Brooke again.

Everyone sits down again and after a few minutes, Nathan says to Haley, who's sitting next to James, "I'm going to go call mom and see how the kids are doing."

"Oh, I'll come with you," Haley says, leaning forward. "I want to talk to them and call my parents too. And James is hungry and so am I, so maybe we can go get some food after?"

"Sounds good to me," James says with a smile.

"Me too," Nathan agrees. "Let's go."

All three of them stand up and Haley takes Nathan's hand and leans against him as they walk down the hall, heading for the payphones near the elevators. But as they're walking, James shouts to them.

"Mom, Dad, look!"

They both look straight ahead as a little girl comes running for them.

"Mommy!" Katie shouts as she runs closer and closer and then finally leaps into Haley's arms when Haley bends down to catch her.

"Mommy, I missed you!" Katie says sadly, but also happily.

"Oh, I missed you too, baby," Haley says standing up again with her little girl in her arms.

Nathan and James meet Deb, Chloe and Henry half way down the hall.

"Mom, what—"

"I know, I know," Deb interrupts, pushing Henry up higher on her hip. "You wanted to wait until you were all back in the U.S., but I couldn't stand waiting anymore and neither could they."

Nathan smiles and hugs his mother. He kisses her cheek before taking Henry from her and kissing him. Haley walks over to them, hand in hand with James and Katie. She's smiling at Nathan, Henry and Deb, but she's looking for Chloe. Then, she sees her at Deb's side, staring at her and looking so scared.

"Oh Chloe…" she says softly with tears as she releases her children's hands and kneels down to Chloe's level.

She reaches out to hug her, but Chloe backs away and hides behind Nathan, her fear obvious by that action. Haley;s smile fades, as do the smile of the others.

"What's the matter, baby?" Haley asks her daughter, so afraid that the time apart from her has erased her from Chloe's memory. _Otherwise, why wouldn't she be hugging me right now?_

Nathan passes Henry back to Deb and kneels down next to Haley and in front of Chloe and he says, "What's wrong, honey? Why are you so afraid? It's mommy…I know you remember her."

"She does remember," Katie says as she and her brother walk over to their sister.

"She just doesn't think you're real," James adds, understanding exactly how his sister feels. He kneels down in front of her too and he says, "But she is real, Chloe. It's really mom. The man who took her and Coop is never going to take them away again. She's right here with us now."

He points at Haley and finishes, "That's her…really. And she's not going anywhere."

Chloe looks at Haley and slowly holds her hand out. Haley looks at it and she holds out her own too and folds it into Chloe's hand.

"See, Chloe?" She speaks softly to her and touches her cheek with the back of her other hand. "Your mommy is right here now."

Chloe stares at her a moment longer before jumping into her mother's arms. Haley sighs relief and giggles as she holds her little girl close and stands up again.

"Hi Mommy…" Chloe says when she sits her head back up and looks at Haley.

"Hi baby," Haley says, catching her breath. "I sure missed you, Peanut."

"I missed you too."

Chloe leans in and kisses Haley's cheek while the rest of the family watches.

"Thanks, baby."

"You welcome, Mommy. I love you."

"I love you too, Chloe," Haley says, hugging her daughter again.

As they are hugging, Nathan takes Henry back from his mother and they, Katie, and James come in for a group hug with Haley and Chloe…together finally.

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After seeing Grace and calling home to talk to his girls, Lucas has decided it's finally time to go in and see Brooke. He enters her room and slowly makes his way over to her bed. He sighs as he sits down and like the others, he takes her hand in his before he talks.

"Hi beautiful," he says as he kisses her hand.

""I'm sorry it took me so long to come in and see you. I had to build up some strength first I guess. And I think going to see the baby help me do that. She is…so little and so beautiful. She looks exactly like you, Brooke. I just hope she has your fight in her too.

"I was in there with her for awhile and I just couldn't let go of her little hands. It was like…while I was holding her hand, I was holding your too. And I really believe that I was…just like I believe you can hear me right now. And if you can, then you know how I'm feeling right now."

Finally, Lucas gives up and lets the tears go.

"I'm so afraid I'm going to lose you, baby. I'm so afraid that you're going to leave me and the kids behind and you can't because I need you…and the girls need you too. I can't do this alone and I can't be without you, nor do I want to. You have changed my life in so many ways, Brooke, and all for the better. You're my saving grace. So you have to come back to me."

Staring at her beautiful face, Lucas remembers every moment with her. He remembers being with her and losing her because of his foolish choices. He remembers befriending her again and falling so in love with her…

"_Talking to yourself?" He asked, standing in the doorway of his bedroom where she was sitting on his bed. _

_She was waiting for the cab that would take her to the airport, where she would get on a plane, headed for California, where she would stay for the entire summer. _

"_What, is your summer job driving a cab?" She asked him when she saw him._

_He closed the door and as he walked inside a little farther he said, "I put your stuff in the car."_

"_So I guess this is goodbye?"_

_He held out his arms for a hug. And she stood up and accepted a warm friendly hug. They held it for about thirty second. She smiled as they pulled away…until he kissed her._

"_Tell me that wasn't a goodbye kiss?" She said in reaction. _

"_I want to be with you, Brooke."_

_She backed away from him in utter shock._

"_What?"_

"_I'm sorry. I know we're friends. It's just how I feel."_

"_But what about Peyton's stuff?"_

"_I keep that stuff as a reminder of how badly I screwed up things…with you. To remind myself that if I ever get a second chance…I'd never let you go again."_

"_I don't know what to say, I, um…"_

_The cab outside honked and interrupted their discussion._

"_I got to go," Brooke saidm accepting that distraction as a way to avoid her feelings._

_She walked to the door, but stopped at his voice, "Brooke…do you think you could ever—"_

"_Lucas…I'm sorry." She opened the door. "I got to go. Bye."_

_He watched her as she left him behind for three months without any indication of her feelings._

"I told you I would never let you go again," Lucas says to Brooke as he pets her head. "You were scared, but I promised I'd never hurt you again. I promised I'd always be there for you. I'm the guy for you, remember?"

"_I'm the guy for you," he said at the summer beach party the night before they started their senior year at Tree Hill High. "I know we're just part time and that's cool. You can do whatever and have your fun. But one of these nights, you're gonna realize it. I'm the guy for you, Brooke Davis. You'll see."_

"And you did see, didn't you?" Lucas continues, speaking to her while she lay unconscious, running through memory after memory with her. "You were scared and you made some mistakes, but you realized that you wanted to be with me too."

_He opened the door when he heard the soft knock. Brooke was standing on the other side with a small brown box in her hands._

"_There are 82 letters in here," she said as she handed it to him. "And they're all addressed to you."_

_He looked down at the box curiously as Brooke continued._

"_I wrote them all this summer. One a day, but I never sent them because I was afraid."_

"_Brooke…"_

"_I was afraid of getting my heart broken again, like before. 'Cause you hurt me so bad, and I was afraid to be vulnerable. And I was afraid of you and the way that you make me feel. And I know that doesn't matter now after what I did, but I just thought that you should know. This is how I spent my summer, Luke…wanting you. I was just to scared to admit it."_

_She turned and walked away from him. He wuickly put the box down and rushed out to stop her before she left. _

"_Brooke! I'm sorry. What you did with Chris, it's okay."_

"_It's not. It can't be. It's too much to forgive."_

"_Well, that's too bad because I forgive you."_

"_You can't."_

"_I just did. So you're just going to have to deal with it. I'm the guy for you, Brooke Davis. And I know I hurt you the last time we were together, but…"_

"_I love you," she interrupted him._

_He smiled and said, "I love you too."_

_He reached up and touched her face as he said, "Pretty girl."_

_And at the same time, they went in for a kiss._

"That was a really great reunion for us, Brooke, " Lucas says to her. "But the best one would be now if you would just wake up. Wake up and tell me you love me again, Brooke, just like you did that night."

He waits another minute, still stroking her head and soft hair. Then, he says, "I'll be waiting for you to wake up. I'll wait forever if I have too, but you have to wake up. I'll never give up hope and I'll always have faith, I promise. You can count on me forever."

He leans up and kisses her lips before sitting down again. He sits with her four hours more, sharing more and more memories, hoping that they may help her find her way back to him. And just like he promised her, he will never give up on her. Never.


	42. Sequel Info & Shout Outs

Wow, so many reviews!!!! Thanks so much, I appreciate them, you all know I do  Now I'll answer some of the questions you guys had, and then I will tell you about the sequel and give you the title so you can keep an eye out for it. So first, the shout outs….

**Snowbabie:**

**I am going to try to have the sequel up before I go back to school on the 3rd, so keep your eyes peeled. I'm glad you enjoyed the flashbacks and the name…I was hoping to bring about some tears LOL. It took a lot of hard work on that chapter. **

**Jeytonbrucasnaley**

The ending I chose does exactly what I want it too….it gives a nice close to the story, but also keeps the readers wanting more, so they will come and read the sequel. Pluse, it kind of leads right into the sequel. Thanks for your reviews

Nemo123489 

From your review, it seems like you didn't really like that chapter, that you were disappointed. I'm sorry about that. I was just writing the way I like to write and what I want to see…which is how most fanfic writers write, isn't that true? And Brooke in the story was only like 7 ½ months pregnant, so the baby was premature. She was not due in 2 weeks. A baby is premature if it comes before 40 weeks, though most babies come at like 36 or 38 weeks, so they don't really consider that premature. But any earlier is premature. Trust me, I know what I'm talking about. I took a Family Living and Parenting class last year and we had a whole chapter on just this stuff and I remember it all, so I researched it. Sorry you think I'm making it too dramatic, but this is a story about one tree hill….a very dramatic show. And brooke tends to be dramatic. Other people seem to like it, and I'm sorry you don't. besides, all this stuff with her is to lead right into the sequel, which is going to be mainly about her and lucas. And I'm sorry your disappointed it wasn't a boy….i wanted it to be another girl because I wanted that name Grace now and not later….it all ties into events I have planned in the sequel. With the things I have planned….Lucas and Brooke will get their boy eventually. I'm leaving the door open for that, which is why I had them have a girl now, so that door could be open. Thank you for your honest opinion though, even when it's criticism, I still like to know what everyone thinks…helps me make the story better.

**Courtneylovejason**

Ha ha….loved your review too. I love the whole 'Y' thing too….glad someone mention the pattern I have going. LOL. I will have the new story up ASAP I promise. Thanks so much for your reviews, your scolds and your thoughts LOL. Loved every one of them

**Now for the sequel information….**

The title will be What Life is This? Can you all keep a look out for that? LOL 

**The story will probably take place about 3 months from this one. So it will basically be centered around Lucas and Brooke. Brooke is still unconscious, but she will wake up, and from title you can probably figure out what's going to happen from there. I already have the last chapter of this sequel in mind, so I'll probably write that first before I forget it, and then make tweaks to it later. I have an epilogue planned too since this will be the last in this series of stories. I have some other ideas in mind too, but I still have to develop them. I have to think about how to start this story, so give me a couple days to get it started. But I promise you won't have to wait too long for it. So keep a look out for What Life is This?**


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